negatives

it rained for the first few innings
beads of light
fell in slow motion
into her mouth -
no one kept score, until the ninth.

the stadium roared -
what was beyond our reach
became tangible, all
hands, lips, and joy
so why then
the sudden defeat?

on the way home
fireworks culled a memory from the dark
they stopped once,
across an old bridge
omatsuri in Japan, found
the sky exploding with flashes of light

nothing remained
except this
beauty, confined
within a few solitary frames.