Get your kids on whatever bikes they ride
And go on a hunt.
We had a two year old with us,
So we hunted for the baby ducks
At nearby Meridian Hill Park.

The kids flew down the sidewalk on their bikes,
Z swerving on her two-wheeler,
S’s training wheels rattling.
The older sisters waited for their little brother at the cross streets,
Flew along the smooth park paths,
Dumped their bikes and ran down the steps along the formal fountain.

S found the baby ducks first.
We watched them swim and dive with their parents,
Raced past the bathing sparrows and
up the long steps,
And biked back home.

Z was elated at being the fastest,
S at having found the ducks
And M, who struggled with being slower than his sisters, proudly said
I go to Camp Slugabed.