to the boys with a ball in central park

Striding across CPW

hurrying late 

thinking only 

of getting my 

naughty piebald puppy

to kindergarten 

through the stone gates

now finally

he’s trotting

ears flapping as

we pass into the mythical 

myrtle fern and forest 

greens

of Fredrick Law Olmstead

my hero

into his trees of wonder 

and fresh shade 

across his spreading 

fields 

no not strawberry 

too far uptown for 

that old sadness

imagine

then i hear see clock 

five boys playing

maybe ten years old

no ref

no off-sides

just them a ball

dribbling kicking 

sprinting headers 

their game

hot summer city fun

till an errant pass sends

the ball 

across our path

into the arms of a bush

señora por favor

one calls pointing

sun glinting off five 

round sweating faces

ten dark eyes imploring

so puppy and i go in for it

the bush burly and barbed

seems to want 

to keep the ball

guards it plus

snags the leash

to free the puppy 

who mad dashes

off into the world 

toward the players

i emerge ball in hand

to boy cheers

and send it back 

with a side foot boot

straight and true 

from long ago 

highschool 

me the swift forward

bueno señora 

one calls thumbs up

that brown accent again

they can’t guess that kick 

came from the only girl 

who weaseled a way

onto the boy team

something of a 

suburban star 

back then

now we’re all smiling 

saturday soccer smiles

with the freedom crazed 

puppy on the loose

careening from one to

another of them

he won’t be caught

too much fun for him

but they try 

they lunge they call

perroito

he runs between them in 

his own private keep-away game 

forgotten kindergarten rules

of come sit down stay 

no way

then a smart boy pulls 

something i can’t see from his pocket

takes a bite then waves it

mmmmm 

in front of the streaking 

puppy’s nose

a sucker for food any food

he slides to a happy halt

and grabs while smart boy

grips his collar 

caught

with my best pronunciation 

muchas gracias I tell him

and think of these sweet, sweaty boys now

as my own central park five

and wish so much better 

for them

than those five got

back then

eres bueno says smart boy 

to my puppy

though he is not

i take up the leash

we have lessons

to learn deeper 

in the park

are even later now 

than before but glad 

for our new friends

who wave and call

hasta luego señora

hasta luego perrito

trotting on

i like to think

we’ll meet again

the boys and i

in central park

on some other

soccer saturday.