Today I’m using the Writer’s Digest prompt: Write a poem using at least three of the following six words: convict, great, play, race, season, and voice.

Watching the children play in every season

Summer in Arizona means we can’t stay outside 
for long (too hot!) unless we’re wet. A few hours a day 
we play in the pool. I swim a lap, then sit in the shade to watch
games of Marco Polo or diving for rings. My children’s
happy voices are music to my ears.

Fall’s temperatures gradually cool until the pool
no longer sings its siren song. Off to the park to play,
to swing, to climb monkey bars, to run races.

Only an Arizonan understands
the need to wear a down jacket when the winter temperature
hits a frosty 50 degrees. Can we go somewhere there’s snow?
No. Mama doesn’t remember how to drive on icy roads.
I’ll watch you ride your bikes ‘round the cul de sac instead.

Spring is short in the desert. The blooming orange trees and wildflowers
remind us that blazing heat will return soon. Now is the time for baseball. 
It’s great when we win! Juice boxes and chips after the game.

©ARHuelsenbeck 2021