Emerald fields of
waist-high corn
glitter in the sun

abandoned
highway – a bleached ribbon
draped across the hills

mossy shoulders
rise from the earth:
Appalachia

eruption of cheers
from the back seat –
a mountain!

molehills of mustard
buttons – wildflowers
in the sun

noon sun paints
fluttering leaves in
apple green

pink blush
on the hillside, a shawl
of moss and flowers

Snaking the pass,
leafed walls climb into the sky.
We drive among mountains

in Virginia
no more words –
only joy