the trolley bell

[Steve]

if the trolley bells of Stone Harbor sound too
Hokey,
too dead to the S.U.V.
too decayed for the matchbox sized
speedster
then go off into the woods
get drunk in the silent air
anywhere
there's a nice place next to
Multanomah Falls
where there aren't even
telephone poles.

if the trolley seems but a dream
too insignificant to keep on life support
too decrepit to admire
too shameful and pathetic
then go off and hug your grandmother
hold her frail bones
that were once as strong
as the trolley rails
sit in the sofa she hasn't replaced
the same cushions that held you
while your diaper was changed.

if the clang of this bell bothers you
then the church should stuff newspapers
into their bells
and ring silent as heaven
or the blackness that replaces life.

if the ding of the trolley doesn't
sing
the way you wish it would
perhaps its time to mature
and learn that its not all
for you.