In Carefree

Far from the strife, the hostilities, the biblical wars

of old historical lands;

far from the hustle, the stress, the unsightliness

of overstuffed cities;

far at the farthest edge of all just recently built

metropolitan Phoenix,

is worryfree Carefree,

where those of privileged, obviously abundant means

settle all-brand-new into their own American-made dream,

in custom, landscape-blended homes like fully self-contained

little desert kingdoms,

spread out in custom designer communities,

their out-of-sight, never-mind, unassuming streets laid out

amidst the quiet cacti & big, Sun-baked boulders

spat out by Earth some millions of years ago.

In Carefree,

all appears the essence of tranquility, godly remote

from the everyday tragicomedy of the great masses

of suffering humanity.

In Carefree,

the endlessness of the bleached out summer sky

unremitting of heat

emanating from the One who sees all

is the only unpleasant fact,

but life, you know, is thoroughly air-conditioned

in this corner of the world.

In Carefree,

under the stars

night is a very dark perpetual peace—

Coyotes roam freely the streets

in worryfree Carefree.

May 2002