Slow World
...a slow world...
where 9 year old girls with
sunburnt shoulders & sun-streaked hair
dangle their feet in summer-time rivers
where teenage boys hang out
at train stations all day
sneaking cigarettes & long-necks
watch 'em roll in & out
wonder where they could go
where men slap dust from their pants
laugh long & loud
gather at dusk to just
watch stars come out
where I can latch my screen door
listen to Carlos sing about a girl named Tabatha
take a bubble bath
carry blues outside
candles glowing
jasmine throwing
its sweet scent in the air
I am taken there
driving through summer
on a San Diego night
You are loud on my radio
if I listen hard enough
I can make out your soul
Somewhere, the next pop icon
is singing "Mustang Sally" karaoke
& the great American novel
gathers dust in my head
I just keep driving
All the lights are on for me
but no one will open the door
in my rearview mirror
I see shadows of greatness
touching a thundercloud sky
it doesn't stop
shadows reaching
never tall enough
voices singing
never enough
driving
never fast enough
but you move me
YOU
MOVE
ME
I'm spinning in my slow world
crying for a rainfall
anxious for you to listen hard enough
to make out my soul
join me to pray to common saints
at home in a caffeine church
wake up for another beer
magic words
more time for driving
to the summit
thunderclouds rolling by
on our backs
I enjoy the ride
©2000 Lizzie Wann. All rights reserved