crater

we stood on the edge 
like green plastic army men.
depth still smoldering from impact.
the comet fell late afternoon 
as we had been standing on the porch
eating hot dogs 
& talking about sea level rise.
none of us had seen the rock
getting closer. we were chewing 
& the sound of sun screen laughed 
at all notions of death.
it dismiated the herb plants.
singed the old evergreen tree.
stared at us like a grandmother.
pulsed loud & precisely. waited for us
as we waited for it. yards away
other families were breathing AC
& sitting in living rooms.
they might have felt a slight shake 
of the earth. that is the thing
about a meteor, they are mission bend.
familiar. but, just as soon as it was there
the rock was gone. we blinked. 
rubbed our eyes. nothing but
the crater. one by one slipping inside.
walls still warm from collision.
burned root & grit & soil.
we laid in the crater. took selfies
in its mouth. smudged our fingers
from climbing its sides.
"i am the crater," my youngest brother said
as he laid on his back 
& looked at an oranging sun.
we could not leave the crater. one by one
brining beds & pots of noodles. 
the crater was lonely for so long.
singing to the depths we feel it widen.
echo with space & galaxy.
i pet the ground i lay on.
i ask, "where did you come from?"
the crater does not respond.
simply gets a little deeper 
just for me. soon i will graze
the fartherst shoulder of nebula.
will turn stone & fly fast & wreckless
through dark vibrating space
just to return & deliver a crater.