Each morning Mom remained behind

in the cabin at the shore

to vacuum and cook and tidy-up

while the rest of us trudged down

to the beach in our flip-flops,

lugging chairs and balls,

blankets and buckets, rafts, food,

lotions and towels.

But my wife doesn’t do that today

when we rent our place on the Cape.

Instead she sits majestic

beneath her umbrella moving her lips

as she reads her book.