Bridges

I’m awed by bridges

They fill me with wonder

They fill me with awe

I don’t neglect the grandeur

Hands poured the pillings

Smoothed concrete

Lifted the stones

Played out the vision

Of the eyes at the desk

Pencil in hand

Cup of coffee

Paper and calculation

Artitech with the plans

Artist with the design

Engineer with equations

Men and women of desire

Politicians passed legislation

Funding bills, the ways and means

Tax collector collected

Clerk carried the one

Put it in the right pile

We paid the bill in April

Put it off

The addition

Didn’t have the money

Maybe next year

So we could all get somewhere else

Other end of the valley

Across the Russian River

Lake Pontchartrain

Fjords and fields

Redwood trees

Piers out in the ocean

Ships across seas

And if it’s raining we might not notice

If the radio’s strong, we might not see

Just take it for granted

All that's expanded

All the hands it took

To get to the other side

I’m awed by bridges