Autumn Falling

Afternoon melts

Into chimney smoke,

Shadows fall gracelessly

On the hard ground,

As the school bus

Screeches whale song

On its brakes.

I continue home. 

My father owned a Chevrolet

Blue and gigantic,

Its bed so full of wood

It spilled over.

Fairs and Festivals

Had passed through here.

Kettle corn crushed

Into floor mats.

Beaches and sunny days

Late evening ice cream

At the farm stand.

Christmases in rust,

Which had become a red moss

Crawling along

A rocker panel.

Long journeys

In finger smudged

Tom Clancy pages

In the side compartment.

These days held

Cold mornings and crystal grass

Back-to-school aura fading

With the heat of September.

We pull up to the school,

Like any other day and say

Goodbyes later forgotten

The truck pulls away

Down the hill and into

The new day.