Just Exactly Perfect

Share this post

Excavation

russyarrow.substack.com

Excavation

Russ Yarrow
Feb 13, 2021
1
Share
Share this post

Excavation

russyarrow.substack.com

As a young boy in northern Ohio

I feared the bomb

It was drilled into us

I dreamt of being the last person

on earth

B-52s flying overhead leaving

Chemtrails of death and existential oblivion

Things for which I had no words then


So we became commanders of our fate

and began digging a bomb shelter

in the backyard of Summit Street

A pick and a shovel hacking away

10-year-old muscles powered by

dread and excitement

Stopped by a gnarly mass of Maple root

Biology and geology conspiring against us

We were lured inside by lunch

and resignation


Today I wonder

how much further we could have gone

As I excavate a way forward

70-year-old muscles powered by

dread and excitement

Hacking away at

fear, uncertainty, doubt

Dreamless and digging

Always digging

1
Share
Share this post

Excavation

russyarrow.substack.com
Previous
Next
1 Comment
Rhonda Knecht Bonett
Feb 28, 2021Liked by Russ Yarrow

I remember that house on Summit Street and I remember the fear of low-flying bombers, too. Your posts are always worth my time. Thank you.

Expand full comment
Reply
Top
New
Community

No posts

Ready for more?

© 2023 Russ Yarrow
Privacy ∙ Terms ∙ Collection notice
Start WritingGet the app
Substack is the home for great writing