Mow Me Down

He was mowing the ditch, not with a string cutter
but with a heavy mower
as I walked by he felt he needed to explain –
he was shirtless because of this remarkable day

his chest exposed treasured sweat diamonds
sparkling in this unusual sun
his muscles gleamed taut and strong
with his precision lowering and raising
of the blades – cutting a fine green line

I didn’t want to disrupt his concentration
his attention to detail his vision
I was temporary – a moment’s glance
a minor distraction to his work
he was part of my handsome walk

time made glorious with this spectacle of strength
this glistening of light beading on my mind.

Still Can’t Shake Those Small-Town Lost Booze Blues

We used to hide Grain Belt Beer in my girlfriend’s brother’s
’58 pinkish-tan two-tone Chevy Impala that hadn’t
run in years, so we knew our stash was safe.
Bro never let on that he knew our game plan
we knew his that time our booze went missing.

That old car is worth a helluva lot more
than the $400 it sold for off the showroom floor
plus the liquid gold, can you imagine the price?
The good old days were worth their wait
there was no price-tag on our weekend fun.

Wish we had those times back – back when a
six-pack split by six friends would make us happy
cars had sofas for seats, engines and boys took us
from zero to flight before the pedal was on the floor.

Dianne L. Knox, a Pushcart nominee, shares two poems about her life in the Midwest and now the Pacific Northwest. She has an impresive resume including working for a defense communications corporation, owning a small business, practicing and teachign Tai Chi, living in Singapore, and studing poetry at La Romita School of Art in Italy. She is a rabid reader, observer, and listener; she is involved with many creative groups, one being Women of Words, critiquing and enjoying each other’s poetry. She also received Honorable Mention for the 2025 Concrete Wolf Louis Award, published in Cirque Literary Review, Tidepools Literary Magazine, Baamdaad Anthology Afghanistan, and her book, Red Hot Pepper.

Featured image “70 Chevrolet Impala Custom.” Uploaded by Greg Gjerdingen from Willmar, USA to be licensed via creative commons 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons.