STATE PARKS

state parks are for picnics
and summer vacations
spring weekend drives and
autumn walks

through red-yellow
cathedrals of oak and
soft maple sailing down
curled and crisp prayers
to the hard ground below

state parks are for frisbee and
softball and toss and fetch with your dog
watching the sky change
from morning through night and

state parks are for
fireflies and meteor showers
the fireworks under a black sky
on the back bumper of a station wagon
with a six-pack on the ground
behind the rear tire in case the cops come by

and state parks are for
history
bronze plaques
antique cabins
the wagon wheel of memory

state parks are for
the ashes of those
who walk and wonder in eternity

every season

then
and
now.

(c)2011DaveDonovan