Ninety Nine

A desolate drive,

Not desert,

Farm after farm,

Occasional tree,

Two hours in,

Choking smell of cow.

Sister studied there,

Rural school,

Miles from home,

Chasing art and wine,

Five years in,

Fleeing parents’ grasp.

Truck stops and fast food,

Each off-ramp,

Bathrooms aplenty,

Billboards boast lawyers,

Eight eight eight,

Marring the landscape.

Dinuba Reedley,

Nuts, raisins,

Short stretch to sis,

Where’s the Kings river?

One short hop,

Sweet time with sibling.

A regal river,

Citified,

Time changes all,

Images remain,

Fifty years in,

Cherished moments still.