Truck
Stop Dog
Wingo
lounges in the grass
under
tulip trees
near
the Ready Go truck stop
along
the interstate
near
Indianapolis.
He’s
headed for Denver
(only
he knows why),
waiting
on his ride.
Here
comes Toledo Jake
in
his big Kenworth T660.
Wingo
jumps aboard,
head
out the window,
tongue
lolling, wind tearing
at
his ears, Jake shifting
into
high gear, wheels whining.
The
open road is all that matters.
West
of Abilene,
Jake
is on the radio
checking
highway patrol
with
a tanker out of Bismarck,
a
flatbed out of Tulsa.
Wingo
slurps Cheerios and milk
in
the sleeping berth, content.
They
cruise into the pit stop
near
mile marker two-sixty-five
and
Wingo is out the door.
On
the knoll, a pretty cur
wags
her tail and off they go,
Denver
deferred, Jake shouting,
“Adios,
hermano!” He sighs
and
gazes wistfully after Wingo,
chasing
love on the open road.
About
the poet: Orr's
most recent collection is Tongue
to the Anvil: New and Selected Poems (Restoration
Press).