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Last Day at the Swimming Hole

Text of Poem

Two boys pick their way
barefoot down the rough sidewalk,
one bounces a ball,
they wear towels around their waists,
a bicycle pal weaves beside them.
The sun slides over brown skin,
bleached hair, dreaming faces,
a rock quarry with clear water.
They tiptoe half-naked bodies
down a path, gingerly as if
through nettles, toward
a waiting cage of desks
at the end of summer.

First Line
Two boys pick their way
Original Pub Location
Original Publication Date
1974
Original Citation
English Journal 63 (May 1974) 54.
Complete Poems
269
Word Count
65
Poetic Form
open
Bibliographic Notes

Listed as "The Last Day at the Swimming Hole" in the Ward Bibliography

Themes