How can I put into words

that you’ll understand?

I’ve been trying to explain the last few days of this class, people ask me about it, and like, “Oh yeah, how

was that?”

And it’s like they’re asking about a semester abroad, like asking about one’s semester in Senegal, in Russia

or Spain or Beijing, and they ask, and the next moment

the moment when I start to speak, their eyes frost over, float overhead

and it only takes three or four words to do it. What is the story,

what are the three or four words that will keep your eyes on mine,

that will explain some of the beauty of these twenty faces,

that will catch some of the shine of the moment when Alex said to me, ““It was so much fun,”

when we were saying goodbye and I don’t remember what everybody said

and it doesn’t matter because it wouldn’t sound like anything anyway

“DON’T CRY, RACH!”

they catcalled down the street

for about half a block

to make me laugh as I cried into Ben’s arm

for this summer that I can’t articulate to you