John Grey
The redness of the earth
is what time has left
to a one-street town
that measures its wealth
in raindrops.
In an all-year summer,
everything feels a thousand
years old,
even the skin of those
over 40
and everyone’s
over 40 these days.
Give up,
move on,
now that it’s obvious
life can’t turn a miracle.
So say some
but never quite loud enough.
People that are here
only know how to stay put.
It’s as true of the living
as it is of the dead.