Here it comes again
Even though I can’t hear it yet
I can feel it
Coming
February’s barely just begun
I’ve just barely finished
Cleaning off my face and clothes
Trying to make myself look presentable
Trying everything I know
But still....
It’s coming...
If you listen really closely
You can hear it
Swerving,
Ghostly, trebly jingle tune barely perceptible
Making its way down Speer Boulevard
(The road that was never supposed to exist)
Almost lost in the noise & static & shouts
And the hyperbole and the grandstanding
And the waves overwhelming
I feel it coming
Since 1981 it’s been making the rounds,
The same route over and over
When I was younger we heard the tales
Of the well dressed man
Who smiled, and played his song
And whisked through the streets
Doomed to keep searching,
Searching for someone
Anyone
To have him pull over
One last time
I didn’t have time for that kind of thing
Silly stories and unnecessary fear
I’d laugh it off and walk home alone
Anytime of day or night
But tonight is different
Tonight
I feel what they must have all felt
What they still feel
Every night about this time
I try to focus on the rustle of the branches
The sound of running water
Of what traffic is left
But it’s not enough
I can hear the jingle playing
The vehicle speeding
Somewhere nearby, very close!
I can’t think clearly
There’s nowhere to run
I can’t formulate a plan
Just want to get away
I look around frantically and see....
Shimmers
Barely perceptible at first
(It must be my imagination
It has to be...)
But no.
No....
From their hiding places In the long grass,
From the branches of the trees
From side streets I’d never noticed
They had come
They had come.
We nodded to each other and turned to face the oncoming vehicle.
Together.
©2020 by David Leicht. All rights reserved.