the persistent return of fireworks

the fireworks have been out
every single night this week. 
so many fireworks, people have stoppd 
paying attention to them. they stretch 
wirey wings & swoop dragon-like 
above the town, 
leaving glittering fragments 
in the grass. 
at first, children collected 
the debris, 
stuck shards to their tongues
but now the grass is piled with shimmer.
is it still a phenomenon  
if something happens every day?
every week? i open a can of peas
& slip inside 
to talk to some glow worms.
the glow worms have nothing to say
on this topic. 
i peel back the wall paper
& enter a rainforest room. 
i hold a microphone 
& i ask a corpse flower
what it thinks about beauty & patterns.
the corpse flower tip-toes around the question
& instead says it doesn't believe 
in happy endings. the truth 
is somewhere buried in a cliche. 
we will power through. it will be
okay. every single day 
i keep the same routine 
to remain a part of the firework scheme.
i place a spoon in between my teeth
& balance it there. rain isn't good
for anyone, but especially not for 
fireworks. they sizzle overhead.
they wince & cry. i tell the fireworks
we are going to be okay. i tell them
they should take a day off 
but they are furious
how dare i suggest a breach. 
they writhe & keep bursting.
a vein of thunder cracks the front door
into five pieces. a second strike
touches the earth 
& leaves the cars 
glowing in the driveway. the fireworks 
continue long after the storm is gone
until they are ragged 
with bursting.
one blue firework bends down
to ask me if i miss my childhood.
i tell the firework 
living alone
feels like living at a vacation home.
the strangeness of the morning 
in a space that doesn't quit feel perminant.
someday i will crawl into
an abandoned house 
& keep the fireworks safe.
i will stroke their backs till my fingers 
bloom with blisters. we will learn 
to be calm from each other.
in the mornings we will ache 
with our own loudness. the rainforest
will whisper its worries about us. 
the glow worms will smirk 
with envy.