in Kentucky
in Kentucky
us boys sit on the back pew
in Southern Baptist church
Easter morning
Rex lights a fart
flame shoots out
catches his white jeans
on fire
us boys slip out the back
holding breath
hysterically laughing
in Kentucky
20 of us swim
in the pond on the hill
by the woods
a water moccasin
wraps round my thigh
I yell run snake run
in Kentucky
I play pepper
barehand fastpitch
baseball with my brother
in Kentucky
winter snow storm
Brad and I play
basketball on whitemud
outdoor court
and in single lightbulb barn
in Kentucky
Christmas Eve
us kids follow Mama
through whiteout blizzard
she says stop get behind me
she blows cedar down
both barrels
double barreled shotgun
Mama says
y’all get the Christmas tree
and come on
us kids let out a yell
we’re so happy cause
Christmas has come
at last
in Kentucky
I go hunting in blizzard
Christmas morning
lost I listen to the sound
of falling snowflakes
in Kentucky Daddy and I
take honey from the hives
not one bee sting
in Kentucky
milk the cows
barefoot on tall fence
slopping the hogs
one bites my toes
in Kentucky
barefoot on tall gate
feeding horses corn
one bites my toes
in Kentucky
all day
through fields forests hills
I ride
my horse
in Kentucky
always I go
too far
in Kentucky
I am
no more
Nice going, Ron. A real heartfelt letter from home.