All the More Reason
(for William)

From the porch, we
watch flashes of fireflies while
heat leaves the day. In the distance,
a dog barks at dusk. I imagine,
more than hear, the Bronze Frogs
on the Ochlocknee, their song
a single plucked banjo note,
over and over. In the woods,
fox yip and give
chase. Our youth is gone.
In a little while, we will
go upstairs together. Inevitable
night closes in. If there is a heaven,
these are the moments
I will take there with me. If not,
all the more reason to keep sitting right here.

*

Claire Matturro has been a newspaper reporter, a lawyer, and a legal writing teacher at Florida State University and University of Oregon. She is the author of seven prior books, including a comedic legal thriller series published by HarperCollins, and co-author of a recent novel. Claire and her husband live in Florida. Claire is an associate editor at Southern Literary Review and her poetry has been published at Flora Fiction, topicalpoetry, and in an anthology published by the Florida Writers Association.