The Trough, Barbarosa, Texas by Michael Hill
This is another selection from the Texas Poetry Calendar 2008. I was lucky enough to hear Michael Hill read it at BookPeople. He told us about the mental list he keeps in his head of his favorite bars, all over the U.S. and the world, and how he kept coming back to the Trough.
The Trough, Barbarosa, Texas
By Michael Hill
The bulb-lit sign with the arrow
says BEER, a greeting extended
like a secret handshake. Inside,
shuffleboard sand and road dust
settle into cracks in conversation
while bottles come over the bar
in exchange for stories. Outside,
beyond the blanched picnic tables
and thirsty cotton fields, the sky
goes to orange and purple neon
as the sun comes sliding down
the long, dry throat of evening.
