July 19, 2016

Cleveland in Idaho

We listen on the radio as the circus begins,
engine straining from the climb on the interstate
out of Salt Lake City.  I don't know if it's the heat,
or the strange arrival of Scott Baio at the lectern
that silences us, but as the miles roll on our mouths
slacken and fall open, and the air - cooling artificially and
whooshing through the vents, lands squarely on our tongues.
"We need gas," someone says. "We need water," another adds,
and we smack our lips, awake with a thirst we are praying
we can meet in time.