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The House on Chicken Valley Road
A few times each week
I drive past the white stucco farmhouse
big paned windows
without blinds
every room visible
most void of furniture
or wall hangings
A black Mercedes sits in the driveway
and every so often a convertible
when the lover comes to visit
Off to the side
sits a large greenhouse
holds boned branches
of many starved plants
though one green and robust vine
creeps up the side
refuses to die
Yesterday the FedEx truck dropped off a box
couldn’t see who took it
if his face held morning stubble
or if he wore his wife beater tank top
I long to creep in
water the dying wisteria
tomatoes
dill and rosemary
whatever lives
close enough to the entrance
The nightlight
over the garage needs a new bulb
and the grape vine never took
Donna Dallas studied Creative Writing and Philosophy at NYU’s Gallatin School and was lucky enough to study under William Packard, founder and editor of the New York Quarterly. She was on the editorial team of Red Fez and currently serves on the editorial team for New York Quarterly.
photo: Henry Cherry