The door was already open, So I decided to walk through The grass beaded by the dew, Before the sun climbed too high, Or anybody knew. I stepped into the barn, To seek its history. To resurrect it in my mind, Its personality. I love barns. I especially love old barns Where early morning shafts Of light built by dust and rays, Always moving motion, But never changing shape. I love the smell barns give, With a musty aged scent, A wisp of seasoned compost,composted through the years, A time through many seasons, But always time well spent. It wheels me back to my garden, Where if given just a chance, That seasoning left behind, Would make my flowers dance. Now, I love barns that are not too old. You might say that they were new. I especially love the hay barn. Getting ready for cold weather, As it slowly fills with summer grasses. The smell....there's nothing better. Go into a hay barn The day the hay's put up. Breath deep beside a bale of hay, You'd swear a coffee cup Full and freshly brewed, So rich in its olefaction, You'd hardly know the truth, About it being hay. Now, don't get me wrong, I love horsebarns too. And the anterooms that hold the tack and smell of leather too. In horsebarns, I love a concrete floor, Where the clip-clop of the horses hooves, Make a sound unlike any other. I love to bury my face against my horses neck, And breath that air deep and seasoned by the horse. Now, don't get me wrong, I love the cattle barn too. Amid the mangers welcome sign, As winter sets the mood. Ammonias on the wind, As the cattles nostrils blow a fog, Chewing on its hay and cud. Laying on a bed of straw. I love all barns. Barns that hold machines. Tractors,cutters,bailers,brush-hogs, And bailing wire to fix 'em all. So there they are, Some of the great loves of my life. Some barns of many memories. A different kind of wife.
I loved my Dads old barn. When he passed, I finally got up the nerve to go To this hallowed place. I recollected time we spent there, As tears traced down my face. Heck, I was a grown up man crying there alone, With rays of light for memories, And trying to hold on To the ether all around me, And time we'd spent out there, In that barn of many memories That Dad and I would always share.
