Driving Rains and a Radio

Will Hiltz

Driving Rains and a Radio

 

Rain on I-80 near Lincoln, Nebraska, heading east to the docks 

of New York, torrential dawn rain flooding the asphalt 

rivulets deepening, whirling, converging to hub cap high 

bumper high rivers, now fender high, surging, and Billy Graham

preaching on the radio, high, windshield high, hood’s awash

as he’s quoting God’s words to Noah when the car leaves the pavement 

swept east by the flowing flood waters to the raging Missouri

to bob around ox-bows with full grain barges, “Shenadoah”

now loud on the FM, shooting whitewater down to St. Louis

to the broad Mississippi - calmer, but swollen, a great liquid plain 

flowing south past northbound riverboats, “Old Man River” 

on the Memphis airwaves down though the delta to the Gulf, and on 

out to sea, New Orleans broadcasting an old grainy voice on a 78 rpm 

somberly rendering “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” to lull me to sleep

as night comes full of tankers from Galveston ...

 

                       awaken

 

                               in the rain

 

                                            ‘bout a mile from Key West

 

catch the swift Gulf Stream north, catch hornpipes and shanties 

on the airwaves from Charleston, while brisk Southerlies and following seas 

rock the car past galleons, slave ships, man-o-wars, the battle-scarred Merrimack 

glimpsed in the rearview, a U-boat crew up for air as seas roughen into  

the North Atlantic, “SOS, Mayday, Mayday!” on the C.B. now, Titanic going down

way out east as I ride the wake of a tramp packed with Irish into New York Harbor

past the ferry, many freighters and Lady Liberty, beaching half a day early in Queens 

with the “Odyssey” ringing in original Greek from the speaker as the rains let up

 

  • Author: Will Hiltz (Offline Offline)
  • Published: March 15th, 2017 00:40
  • Comment from author about the poem: I ran across an old box of memorabilia the other night, in which were some of my early poems like this one. I\\\'ll post the better ones here over the next few days. Enjoy.
  • Category: Unclassified
  • Views: 170
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Comments +

Comments2

  • Goldfinch60

    Very good write. I belong to a poetry group which meets once a month and this very much reminds my of the style that one of the poets in the group writes.

    • Will Hiltz

      Thanks, Goldfinch60. Interesting about the group member with a similar style - I've always been attracted to this style for poems that it fits well, but I don't know what it's called or who immortalized it - Ginsberg, whose poetry I truly admire and still love to read aloud in certain moods (especially Howl, and Transcription of Organ Music), certainly comes closest. It's sort of a cadenced, obsessional rant style that fits well when the material warrants. Glad you liked it.

    • willyweed

      this one sweep me away very nice work!

      • Will Hiltz

        Thanks, willyweed. Sometimes getting swept away is exactly what's needed!

        • willyweed

          yes swept away, sorry about that Will!



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