What the Sign Says

You write one word. It is not the one you climbed up meaning to write.

The word is HERE.

The ink goes into the grain. You press your thumb to it to be sure, and it does not come off. The wind drops. The flag lies down against its pole.

A little way down the slope, someone in a red cap takes a step toward you, and another. You know the walk. It belongs to a person who has come a long way for a blank sign. They have a pen in their hand, uncapped.

They reach the post and read it. Their lips move on the second E. They put the cap back on the pen.

You nod to each other. Neither of you says anything. You sit down against the post. After a while, so do they.