Requiescat in pesto

Needed: a ritual for clipping the last basil
for the last batch of pesto
for inhaling that final blast of slower days
as the blender grinds
like last rites for the summer

here in the middle of September
something to comfort us
amid this rigid schedule
and the last ripe tomato
lingering on the windowsill

something to remind us
all this homework will come to an end