Maps

Make this part look rugged

Mmm-mmm

Allegheny plateau

This dark shaded stripe

Bum bum bum

Is the front

Paint the long ridges

And valleys below

Mmm-mmm

Our town is this dot

Quick dashes mark the property ends

Beach creek

A road that turns and bends

Little squares for houses

Strung along roads

The land transfigured

Into topographic codes

Maps show you what is simple and true

Try laying out a bird's eye view

Not what he told you

Just what you see

What do you know

That's not your dad's mythology

Dad was born on this farm

Here's our house

Here's the spot where he died

I can draw a circle

His whole life fits inside

Four miles from our door

I-80 ran from shore to shore

On its way from the Castro

To Christopher Street

The road not taken

Just four miles from our door

You were born on this farm

Here's our house

Here's the spot where you died

I can draw a circle

I can draw a circle

You lived your life inside