Abilene by Sundown

by Charlotte Webb
© 2003, all rights reserved.
Thumb out at daybreak, when a U-haul bound for Texas,
Sundown side of Phoenix, near Highway 17,
Pulled off to the shoulder, don't know why she did it,
Nonstop talking speed freak, Litchfield to Abilene.

She liked his talking, liked the way he prattled.
Her life had been on cruise control in the passing lane,
Steering with her elbows, no acceleration,
And why do all the exits start to look the same?

Abilene by sundown, Motel 6, a haven.
Didn't touch each other, sleeping through the night.
Green fields of Angus, Charolais, and Hereford;
Never once question the wrong or the right.

Longest stretch of blacktop: Abilene to Cowtown.
Just outside of Eastland, he pulled a .44.
Dairy Queen in Mingus, stop-off for a soda,
Helpful señorita now lying on the floor.

Torrential downpour, a wrong turn in Dallas,
Heading down to Houston, logic in a flood,
No way of knowing what's about to happen
But the second time is easy, once you've tasted blood.

Abilene by Sundown © 2003, by Charlotte Webb. All rights reserved. Used by permission.
Except as permitted under the Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this web page may be reproduced or distributed in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the author.

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