which is a good thing

                                     since it’s been a long time since

                that summer in Brooklyn
         when they closed off the street
                         one hot day
                            and the

                                                                FIREMEN

                                                                                   turned on their hoses

                and all the kids ran out in it

                                in the middle of the street

                         and there were

                                                maybe a couple dozen of us

                                                                                          out there

with the water squirting up
                                                 to the

                                                                sky

                                                                       and all over
                                                                                         us

there was maybe only six of us
                                                    kids altogether
      running around in our
                                              barefeet and birthday
          suits
                   and I remember Molly but then

      the firemen stopped squirting their hoses
                   all of a sudden and went
                                 back in
                           their firehouse
                                   and
                started playing pinochle again
                             just as if nothing
                                    had ever
                                                    happened
while I remember Molly
                                        looked at me and

         ran in