Years of cutting dull the blade
the mind once sharp and finely honed
succumbs to wear if left alone and
not repaired and not condoned to cut
rampant grass like lies that choke
and clutter wood and glen where nature
somehow should weed out the bad and
               leave the good
but who’s to say what’s good or bad
or what’s been left or what’s been had
if judgment is the only source
and years have piled upon the steel
reshaping form and cutter’s course?

Gary Busha lived in Eau Claire during the middle '70s. Lawnmower appeared in Factory Rejects: Two for a Nickle and is reprinted by permission of the author. To learn more about Gary, see this review.

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