Thruway

by Fred Woods

Laid end to end my memories

would stretch from skipping

stones on Lake Champlain

to walking the shores of the Salish Sea.

A single lane one way

slash through time

zones so doable and

with no time to waste I hired

an engineer and drew up specs.

The permitting!

Are my memories

carbon neutral?

Biodegradable?

Will they disrupt the migration

of caribou or salamanders?

Of course

I want guard rails and

breakdown lanes for whiteouts

in high mountain passes

and rest areas for night drives

my radio set to yesterday’s songs.

There’ll be an entrance ramp

around every bend but

just one exit ‘cus that’s the rule.

We’ll have speed limits and tolls and

we’ll evade the speed limits but

not the tolls,

the tolls will always be

collected.