Shirley and I started out the day
being led out down the long dirt road
by a big green four-by-four
Driving over small tree limbs
and what was left of the mud
underneath
Shirley didn’t panic while
I held the wheel tight,
steering us over a road
I couldn’t see,
with the water
rushing through the
ditches like rapids
of root beer
with foam on top
At the end I blew kisses
to my four-wheel-drive friend
while Shirley and me
made our way via rainy
hard-topped roads,
gliding through all the places
where water rushed
over the streets
I found out today that
Shirley can swim! - but
I think she was really
just washing the clay
from her bumpers and rims
She’s a little vain that way
because even though she is
one hundred ten thousand
miles old, her red has never
faded away and neither has her
get up and go
Once home she looked
shiny and ever beautiful,
as she wiped her face
one last time.
I went inside, offering up
a silent prayer to God
and to the folks at Jeep
‘cause Shirley never
lets me down
We've had over three inches of rain in less than 12 hours - on already saturated ground. The twenty minute drive home took me almost an hour - and behind me, paved roads were starting to break apart, water mains were breaking, and elderly folks were being evacuated in some areas. The county declared emergency status and we are getting more rain this week. I really love my Cherokee... I call her Shirley because she surely gets me to and from anywhere I go!