After the Solstice

Photo by Ryan Grady on Unsplash

I drive slowly, bisecting the valley
On a road more twisted than I remember.
Past the house with the patch on it
Through the village
The general store closed,
I glance for the covered bridge behind it.
A saw mill sickens the landscape,
Until it is redeemed
With the grove of brick houses.
Set against the slope to the east,
Flat fields out front
Level with the Ammonoosuc.
The sun behind thunderheads
Hesitant in their threat.
The scene spreads wide and open.
Hay being mowed in near twilight,
The farmer twisted ‘round
On his tractor wipes his brow
Wishing for his supper
Kept warm on the back of the stove.
On up through the hills I go
Headed for the notches.
A glimpse of God’s country
Before the light retires
In this long dusk of June.