A BOY I KNOW

He runs through metal horses and muddy splashes Falling raindrops are nesting in his eyelashes In his chest, newspapers frolic like fingers His unstable arms shelter them from wet dangers To his young mind, their silent message is a mystery But should the rain smite them, today, hell go hungry He slips in fright as the sky growls at him A thousand wagging tongues burst and laugh at him Thank heavens! He cheated the wrath of gravity But there flies a leaf on its way to eternity He watches on like a helpless swaying bud As his feet press on to bathe the pavement in mud