1
A quick flick and the naked bulb goes out.
The clock's red LED takes over
but the book resists and stays open
like an all-night diner.
You run your fingertips over the page.
You can take this story anywhere.
2
You are bicycling along a towpath.
A hurdy-gurdy struggles to be heard.
The river overflows
and remains in a holding pattern
capturing a sunset
on its tense surface.
3
Your mother sits on a small canvas folding chair.
She wears pedal pushers, and reads Ladies Home Journal.
Her bicycle leans on its kickstand.
Your father fishes.
He never wears shorts when he fishes.
Teens jump off a steel-decked bridge into the canal.
4
A restaurant quivers with early birds.
Bingo players begin arriving.
Mobiles hang from the washroom's tin ceiling
like bats waiting for handouts.
A well-intentioned sous chef
parses sentences in the corner.
5
You spin past, stopping now and then to read the shrubs.
Your fingers come in handy.
A boy scout troop has canoed a segment of the canal
and is setting up camp for the night.
The troop's leader carries a bag of merit badges
and is eager to share his expertise.
6
A huge oil barge engines through
leaving only fifteen feet on either side.
Several stand in awe.
Fishermen reel in their lives.
The bargemen pose for Brownies.
Beyond the canvas chairs an amusement park readies itself.
7
The evening fills with families, couples, solitaire players.
Their painted dispositions color the back seat
of a large, black, calm sedan.
Its driver makes the most of the eel flies
that crunch when the sedan rolls over them
on its way out.
