Ecosystem

I take a deep breath

and look toward the door.

My grandfather nods.

An errand for Mrs. Hershkowitz?

He looks at me for a long time,

then he nods.

You hoping she’ll let you walk the dog?

I smile.

 

 

I hold the tightly wrapped

package of roast beef under my arm

and walk back toward her apartment.

I like the cracks in the old sidewalk,

how they fill with water when it rains.

Inside are tiny ecosystems,

snails and other animals living their own

tiny lives. I wonder if they see me.

I feel like sometimes I live

in my own ecosystem

that nobody else understands.

Maybe, like the snails,

it’s okay to just be quiet sometimes.