yellow sawtooth hearts litter the ground

their fellows still clinging to the branches

that arch overhead

the hearts on the ground

give applause

as I play hopscotch on them

tapping them all with my boots

the river races me

jogging to keep pace

as I run beside it

and it twists over on its back to watch me

laughing as it pulls ahead

and drops over the falls

some of the sawtooth hearts

are more adventurous than their fellows

and go for a swim

steering little yellow canoes

and laughing with the river

the wind encourages more of the hearts

to grow wings

and flutter down to play hopscotch

it tousles my hair one more time

before weaving off to play

among the other branches