Waiting For The Union Army

I wait with Huckleberry Finn

in the weeds

by the side of the river.

We are waiting for the Union Army 

to come floating around the bend

on huge rafts

built of Missouri timber

singing “John Brown’s Body”

very solemnly.

We’ve been waiting for a long time.

At night we build a big fire

in a cave over to the side of the river

so we won’t be discovered

by the smoke.

And we lie on our bellies

And look out on the river

Watching for the Union Army.

They haven’t come yet.

The river looks silver under the moon.

It is very wide and the night is very long.

We fall asleep.

Last night in a dream

Jim came up through the woods and said,

“We can’t wait for the Union Army no more.

We’ll make our own army.”

He had two rifles.

He gave one to me and one to Huck.

And I cried,

I was so happy.

May 1972