by Mary Atkinson
My brother and I
ankle deep
in the cool water
of a brook
that tickled our legs
and spilled our buckets
as it ran into the sea
decided
to divide
the world
in half.
He got
the sandy bank
wavy ferns, wild blueberry bushes
pine trees, forests
and mountains all the way up to the sky
And I got
sea grass and rose hips
climbing rocks and tidal pools
splashing waves
and all of the ocean
All of the ocean, I told him
All the way around the world
Around the world, he asked
To my mountains and forests
To my blueberry bushes and sandy bank
Around the world to our brook
that turns into the sea?
My brother and I
sitting in the brook
on a hot summer’s day
catching twigs and minnows
in our buckets
and letting wet sand
slide through our fingers and toes
We decided
not to divide
the world
in half
but keep it as it was.