“Driving North on I-15”
Can driving north
on I-15 past Idaho Falls
and Roberts,
the metropolis of Hamer,
and then Dubois,
the Sheep Experiment Station,
and Spencer, Idaho,
home to the famous opals,
ever get boring
with fence lines,
Larsen’s thousands of acres
of spuds and grain,
vast open land deposits,
mountain ridges,
and a few outcroppings
of buildings,
along the way?
Fields full of angus
and a few Herefords mixed
with a few deer add
some diversity
in the immensity
of space
almost too big
to comprehend.
In the winters,
Monida Pass
is treacherous
yet stunning, especially
when the sun is out,
the wind blowing boatloads
of snow across the road,
climbing high on both sides
of the road
where the snow fences
meet it, try to sway it
to stop before entering
the highway on either side.
The enormity of it all
keeps your eyes wide
open, hands clutched
on the steering wheel,
hoping never to miss
something that might
swish you off the road
and into the barrow pit
where you may stay
until spring
or until a trucker comes
upon you in the darkness
as he slows down
to put his truck
into a lower gear
to climb higher.
The key is to stay put
on the road you can see
and travel on, slowly,
methodically, ever attentive,
perhaps listening
to Fleetwood Mac,
Chicago, or maybe
some Three Dog Night
and miles to go
before you sleep.
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