When We Finally Made It to the Rest Stop

When we finally made it to the rest stop
Dad explained to us that we would have five minutes to pee
And that if we couldn't pee in five minutes
Something was seriously wrong with our bladder
And we'd have to be checked out by a local town doctor
Who would probably misdiagnose us
And put us on an unnecessary antibiotic
Which would weaken our immune system
And cause us to catch the plague

He didn't specify which plague
So I thought he meant a locust plague
And Tim thought he meant a plague of frogs
And Tim got excited because he wants a frog as a pet
And that was the moment he decided
To weaken his immune system
And thereby cause the frogs
To rain down on him

This is what happens when you give the Old Testament
To impressionable children

Mom got out at the rest stop
And danced around the gas station
Because the heat had gotten to her
And so she started creating poems
About former lovers she'd had
When she was young and living in New York
Cavorting with pastry chefs

Our mother's youth was a mixture
Of cupcakes and unbridled passion

When we finally made it to the rest stop
I found a hill and climbed it
And looked down upon a hidden city
Where there were green lawns
Freshly trimmed and squared

And general stores
And barbershops
And bakeries
With pastry chefs
That my mother would undoubtedly enjoy

I put my thumb over each house
And soaked up the lives inside the house
So I could bring them back to the car with me
And watch them live out their lives
On my lap while the drive commenced

I imagined seeing birthdays
And graduations
And anniversaries
And perhaps death
And grieving
And sadness

And then from the sky
I would come down
And like God
Give my little people hope

Just by letting them know
I exist

But as soon as I felt myself
Soaking up the lives
Of the little town
At the bottom of the hill

I heard a horn honking
And my Dad was standing behind me

'What are you doing, sweetie?'

I showed him the houses
And he looked sad

They looked like our house
All of them
Down to the freshly cut square lawns
And the lives inside
The happy lives
Unaware that tough times
Are bound to come

Because that's just life

My Dad looked at me and said--

'There's nothing there, honey.'

But I saw the houses
And I saw the lives
And I wanted to say 'No'

They are there
There are possibilities down
At the bottom of that hill

There are people I can help
Things I can control

But my dad just took me back to the car
And sat me down next to Tim
And began to drive
While my mother hummed
Songs from another year

And as we drove away from the rest stop
The frogs began to fall