Night

They talked forever on the night hike, into the field and down the road, and I could feel the life flowing away from the area, the magic disappearing, if it was ever there. Even when we reached the hill, they kept chattering and catcalling into the darkness. A few of us wanted the magic. I guided us to the edge of the clearing. The moon was the size of my palm, as smooth as the skin on a baby's. Together we stood and watched it not move. We talked about being small. A said, as M sang "Somewhere Over the Rainbow," that we were all so tiny, like waves in an ocean. "But each wave rises and crashes on its own," I said.