You can see the whites, all around her eyes

Her lips are dry,
squeezed by sun
Her knees are dirty
but you couldn't tell

Because she put on a long skirt
before leaving the house
a little deodorant
and a hair bandana

She got carried off gardening
before the meeting.
The kids stare at screens
while the grown ups work

They talk about business opportunities
and improving the community

And later they say
I wish we'd spent more time together
Later they say,
I know, but I do good work
Later they stop
when they're too old to get their worth

And they can wonder again
What am I here for?
And they can share drinks with friends
And they can start to forgive their husbands
And they can quietly keep their narratives

While curious children
pull ideologies screaming from their brains
Still screen fatigued
and laden with advertising

At least we got critical thinking
At least we got empathy
at least we got an introduction
to dissent and truth seeking

Don't you think it feels like evolving?
I think the future's coming

and we'll do good work
and we'll say
I wish we'd spent more time together.