broken afternoon

broken toys of somewhere afternoon
lost soul freeway under burning moon
downtime party plays a mournful tune
forget the time,
the place reruns
staring into space

you don't have any answers
you don't have endless time
you stagger at the challenge
running the line

frozen tundra people block the way
dreams pass like clouds none can say
the work goes on in shades of gray
forget the place,
reach out for time
count every dime.

what if this has all been a test?
what if we were never here at all?

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unpublished poem (1996)