Thoughtlessly tossed, ......

     Thoughtlessly tossed......

..the bag was crumpled and old.  

In the light of day, small pieces of brightness,

winked through layers of dust, small relief in an otherwise bleak visage.

Any flecks of brightness, 
if examined closely, 

were spots of original color

not yet weathered away.

The bag buried in the land's debris for years, 

caught in barbed wire;

held up and surrounded by tumbleweeds and grass.  

What had it held?  Hamburger and fries?  

The bag, once full of good taste and smell, 

had been crumpled up and flung

from the window of a passing car.  

The wide highway, swept clean by the prairie wind

had sent the little bag to rest in the weeds,  

lonely and stuck.

Almost, and as if on purpose, the little bag seemed 

positioned out of the way of the elements.  

Sometimes a bird would perch on the wire close to it 

but birds and any other wild life had long since stopped 

checking the bag for scraps of food.

It was dry and lifeless except for 

bugs and critters using the bag for home and shelter.

Would a big wind tear the bag from it’s corner, 
sweeping the barbed wire clean?

Or would the bag disintegrate and become part of the land?

“It’s just not acceptable anymore to litter, just like it’s not 

acceptable anymore to dump anything into rivers or streams.”

~ Tracy Bowen

Edited November 22, 2023