Suburban Nights

The crickets are back, singing outside my window. They serenade the night sky, slowing as the temperature descends. A next door dog barks once, drags his chain in a circle, settles in. The neighbor's window flickers blue. A streetlamp on the corner adds an amber glint to pebbles in the road. And in front of every house, black-shadowed sedans and pick-up trucks parked close to the curb.