In Bethlehem is a yard sale’s old
mower with a cracked head and 
a wheel-less baby carriage with 
Ken and Barbie in naked repose.
Across the way an empty salon
welcomes walk-ins with squirts
from a concrete hippo in a blue
fountain and front lawn whimsy
of a half-moon outhouse.                                     
                                     Oh, a whiff of 
hog-shed where sows  give birth!  

Three men in Sunday shirts smoke
on the steps of church with mud on
their boots  and rain in their eyes.
In tatters, the stars-n-stripes wave
at the self-service post office.
Here’s a field of broken balers
and Bertha’s Corner Store where
the gas pump’s had a stroke.                                   
                                         Up the road
is a sign for Elementary Summer
School: Drumming & Dancing