Vacant Lots

   I walked

through the streets

not stopping.

I passed lawns and houses

where yard sales were screaming

and barbecues howled.

Children ran through

sprinklers

a man mowed the grass

he waved

so did I

but I did not slow my progress

continuing on.

Boys wrestled in the grass

a dog followed me for awhile

but soon lost interest and left me.

It did not matter

for where I was going

it was better to be alone.

Finally I reached my destination

a vacant lot quiet and yawning

I sat on a stump in the shade of

a mountain

of dirt.

Sitting I waited until dusk came to

the vacant lot

listening to the crickets

I left the place

the place of lost echoes

walking back through the streets

I passed the same houses

now quiet

no boys wrestled

the grass where they had been

was flattened.

The lawn mower no longer roared

it sat in the corner of a lawn

not yet finished

Wet grass glimmered