Our poet on Day 577 of the daily poems, Simon Haines, remembers ‘Summers then’ – one might well ask on this damp and chill morning ‘Summers when?’ …
Summer days were longer then,
we played outside all day,
not tempted by alluring screens
or interfering strangers.
The buddleia next door
brought the brightest butterflies:
red admirals, tortoiseshells, and more
with names we didn’t know.
All without fear of predators,
innocent and confident,
though on display and vulnerable,
playing in the sun.
Simon Haines