(for Marilyn Reynolds, above with Shelley Burns)

For the last time on your lawn
Shelley led us in Tuesday
morning exercise—

and though you weren’t there,
you were, because, though it’s
actually not your lawn

anymore, and you’re in new
digs across town, it’s still
your place to us.

You say goodbye,
and I say hello.

We wouldn’t be twisting
to the Beatles without a little
help from you, our friend,

who gathered us all together,
who invited us to your lawn
to exercise and lighten our hearts

during the worst of the worst
isolation most of us have known.
Today, Shelley at one point

urged us to tighten our
“feminine details,” which,
of course, made us laugh,

which, of course, made it
impossible to tighten our
girl parts for a bit.

I imagine that I was not
the only one thinking,
Feminine details!

Marilyn would love that.
And Shelley said to me,
You might need to use that.

And I said, echoing another
Beatles favorite, I will.
And I am, because honestly,

I do this Tuesday exercise
because of a little help
from all of you, my friends.

Here comes the sun,
and I say it’s all right.
Sun, sun, sun, here it comes.