Dustbowl Breakdown

I got wed in twenty-two.
Took this place with mortgage, new.

Built a fence around my land,
plowed that grass with my own bare hands.

Planted collards, corn and beans.
Prettiest spread you ever seen.

Rain don’t come, it leaves you dry,
Underneath that big old sky.

Got no river, ain’t no rain,
lonely here on the great dry plain.

Nature’s older, bigger’n me.
You can’t cheat her, no sirree.

Twenty acres turned to dust,
my new tractor, gathering rust.

Wind blew down from Cimarron there,
big black dirt all in the air.

Ain’t no beans or collards now,
ain’t no nothing left to plow.

Heading out for Monterrey,
nothing here to make us stay.

Windmill, tractor, homestead, plow:
wind and dust can have ‘em now.
Copyright © | Year Posted 2017

Poem

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White Avatar
February 24, 2017 at 6:02 AM
The flow was fantastic indeed Chris, I heard the music in the background... Days gone by, homestead turns to dust. A life lived.... Everything tried, nature wins.
Coy Avatar
February 24, 2017 at 8:07 AM
You sew it up so neatly. I'm interested in the poetry of people who can't use words, like the dirt farmers of the 1930s. Respect, amigo.
Wanter Avatar
February 23, 2017 at 6:40 PM
Refreshingly different subject matter and really nice to read.
Coy Avatar
February 24, 2017 at 7:59 AM
Astute and very welcome comments! Thank you!
Green Avatar
February 23, 2017 at 4:56 PM
I loved this, the flow was smooth, the rhymes fantastic and the story, though somewhat sad, was delightful to read.
Coy Avatar
February 23, 2017 at 6:03 PM
What a terrific review, Chris! Thank you so much!
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