prologue

before the ball's

first flight

before the bat's swift
violence cracks

or nimble fingers drape
the seams or palms

knead instinctively

to dull the cowhide's sheen
which long ago had lost its sheen

before the sun-
patched infield kicks
its dust around the red ball jets
come sandlotter 
warnings of shattering glass:

"no chips!"

"no chips!"

Columbus Park,

Quequechan, c.1953