Yard Art in Georgia
Their presence was sudden.
A two-lane highway——
And there they were,
Life-size wood
Cutouts of people.
Or cardboard?
Faces and clothes
Painted on. A woman
Wearing a frown, a man
In overalls, children,
A dog or two,
A cat or three.
Standing close to the fence
And farther up the road,
On the other side, more,
standing; more, silent. Huddled
Together, as if
To meet the enemy,
Though not yet belligerent, just
Cautious. Waiting.
I felt a prickle on the back of my neck.
I realized my teeth were clenched.
Back on the first side, a third group
Flourishing shovels and rakes.
The curious children were as wary
As their parents, who
Were whispering, most of them——a sound like hissing.
A blue sky made the horror more intense
As they ran after us, throwing
Their shovels, waving
Their sharp-toothed rakes.
