In an Upstate of Mind

More traffic jams and stunted turns:
the rustic in me often yearns
to leave behind this urban maze,
these concrete halls, the hectic haze,
and reach a route that curves away
across the bridges, burbs, and bay,
the smog and streets bogged in the fray
of someone always running late
and life at such a breakneck rate.

And so, it's settled: at this light,
I must drive left instead of right:
this leads me north, whence I was born,
among the horses, wheat, and corn,
where only mountains scrape the skies
and greener fields fill the eyes
with wildflowers, dragonflies
--whole acres no one tread before,
except the cattle, deer, or boar.

I have a certain spot in mind,
the opposite of grime and grind:
a lake to clear my weary head
and spare my soul from going dead
so I can lean back, recollect,
imagine, question, and reflect
on prospects, wishes, things to see,
then breathe, release, and simply be
as nature soothes and sets me free.




In an Upstate of Mind © Copyright 2021, Robert J. Tiess.

View this poem at AllPoetry.com

27 lines.

Previously submitted for Upstate New York, Road Trip challenge prompt - link: https://allpoetry.com/contest/2790718-Take-Me-on-a-Road-Trip
Submitted: October 30, 2021









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