Original Sin
Todd Matson
i remember the thick, black smoke
billowing high into the sky
the bright, red flames
reaching over the burning pines
i remember the sirens
the red firetrucks
the firefighters in their
red hats and black coats
spraying water on the red flames
i remember the neighbors swarming
from every house on the block
to watch the firefighters fight the fire
i remember sneaking matches
from the kitchen cupboard
sticking them in my shorts
walking past my mom
out through the front door
because two bigger boys
in the neighborhood told me to
i remember helping the two boys
build a house out of sticks
feeling proud of the house we built
putting a grasshopper inside the house
lighting the house on fire
and as i watched the firefighters
fight the fire
all i could think about was that
we killed that grasshopper
