The Bike Ride by Naomi Pliskow

THE BIKE RIDE

Lifting the bikes down from the carrier was easy
the two of us riding away from the church in the sunshine
wearing helmets like powerful charms,
past squatting suburban houses
with red and yellow plastic tricycles
lying on their sides in front yards like tipsy horses,
expensive dogs tracking us between upright slats
as we sped like fleeing antelopes from one year to another,
past excited teenagers
wearing bright blue robes and tasseled hats
like costumes for adulthood
before disappearing into their own lives,
as age whispered its first insults in our ears
and my husband, always ahead of me,
faded into the distance,
Time’s dogs snarling in his wake.

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Naomi Pliskow has been writing poetry since childhood, but only recently has begun to share it with others. Her nonfiction writing has been published in several medical journals. Her poetry has been accepted for publication or been published in Adanna, Canary, evermore, and the Schuylkill Valley Journal. Her satirical song lyrics appeared in The New York Times in October of 2024. She lives in Philadelphia, where she is working on her first chapbook.