Neighbors’
tomatoes graced porches The butcher saved
his best ribeyes
for people around
the corner We walked home in the
dark, knowing the locations
of the roiled tree roots
✦
All life was the
same throughout We found
difference each day
Our three friends at
the bar evenings Our eight
cousins in the
house
✦
It was
the same every year We noticed
difference every day Rows of grain
sprouting red
and brown and
green Posters written
by a sure
hand, plastered on
mottled stone
✦
Those times
were patient
Andy Oram
February 6, 2020
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