Ghost Town Etiquette

All that water

 raging out the

mountains

thru the canyon

past the orioles

 willows arched

heads thrown back

underdressed,

copiously pierced

&

medicated—

a steady stream

of beggars

bearing cups

limousines

bearing celebrities

mussed-hair girls

starchy droves of sailors

bus stations, ports

workaholics

headed home

this fast life

& wanderers

headed

nowhere

1 June 1995

[Published in The Dance Of Yellow Lightning Over The Ridge, © 1998 by Jim Cohn]