I listened early for the church bells
But could not hear any. I did hear
The peal of the train whistles as
They gave their warning at the
Crossings. I love that sound,
Especially at night, when it is
Raining and a Willie Nelson song
Is playing. We used to live 100
Feet from the tracks. My bride was
There beside me. How great was that
Even though I had a twelve hour day
Waiting for me the next day. It would be
Interesting to have a warning bell
Peal out danger signals to us
Throughout the day when we were
About to get in trouble over one
Thing or another. We wouldn’t
Need all of the laws and mandates
Because we would never cause
Trouble. The lake is calm this
Morning and a few people are
Out on kayaks, and way out there was
A line of geese of about 20 birds
Long. These are visuals you don’t
See every day. Last night there were
Two fawn grazing one what we call lawn
Now the sun is shining and it is
Seventy-one degrees and warming
My grandpa’s lettuce would be ready
In his Fort Wayne garden. He always
Gardened and had a wonderful green
Thumb. The garden was always well
Kept. My grandma raised the chickens
Life was a little different then, after
WWII. There was a mixture of calm
And anxiety. Nothing was for sure
They lived by the tracks also and on
The hot days you could smell the creosote
Now when I smell it I am reminded of
Those days gone by and all of the
Disappearing dreams we had
Stanski
July 17, 2022, ^
Steve Haarman 