polk county polka

buy this, don't buy that

throw away this, keep that

take this, leave that

run errands, errands, errands, errant errands,

catch up, say goodbye, 

two weeks' notice, job search,

closed files, open files

cut a check, make a deposit,

to do lists, to don't lists,

order this, sell that,

schedule appointments and meetings and examinations,

Indy, Nashveasy, B-Town, CoMO, Springlandia

gallons o' gas, oil change,

fifteen reps, three sets,

breakfast lunch dinner dishes laundry groceries,

dwellings under microscopes:

rent, beds, baths, utilities, availability, luxury,

and, of course, location, location, location.

_______________________________________

this is the dance i love,

but soon enough, 

it will morph

into the davidson county dougie.

i can't complain.

known

he knows about you.

he created you.  he knit you together.

he's right about you -

your sin, your brokenness, your flaws, your imperfections

your "good" deeds,

your selfishness and conceit.

it's no secret to him.

nothing is.

he's the leading expert on you,

and he loves you the same.

cumberland country blues

oak and hickory flank the highway

to and from the homest of places.

temperate deciduous forest

holds a terrifying attraction for me.

my mind hopscotches

here, there, around the square

all eight hours.

plans, possibilities, contingencies,

what-ifs, to-dos, to-do nots,

crossroads, predicaments, and eventualities

spin their webs,

beat their drums,

sharpen their knives,

and scrape their flint

until a mighty fire blooms.

the hydrogen and oxygen are peeled away,

leaving behind the black, black carbon.

much is destroyed,

but

much

is

revealed.