Boulevard! / Charley Seagraves

Boulevard!

You broad-shouldered beauty—

You’re an avenue with a point-of-view,

And you’ve seen it all:

   The movers and the shakers,

   Catholics and Quakers,

   Matchmakers and heartbreakers,

All have lived here,

Now they’re gone with the wind;

   Yet, they always manage to reappear again.

Boulevard!

You broad-shouldered beauty—

You’re an avenue with a point-of-view,

And there’s nothing you can do

But suffer silently until winter’s foul ways

Slowly surrender to spring’s welcome breeze

As it sweeps through your tunnel of trees

Carrying the sweet aromas of honeysuckle and jasmine

Past dogwood blossoms suspended like

Swollen snowflakes patiently waiting to fall,

Past clusters of lavender wisteria

Clinging bravely to ancient garden walls.

Boulevard!

You broad-shouldered beauty—

You’re an avenue with a point-of-view,

And you’ve heard it all:

   The salesmen with all their gimmicks,

   The heretics with all their polemics,

   And a host of politicians and holy men and academics,

All have been here,

Now they’re gone with the wind;

   Yet, they always manage to reappear again.

Boulevard!

You broad-shouldered beauty—

You’re an avenue with a point-of-view,

And there’s nothing you can do

But suffer silently until the dog days of summer

Slowly surrender to autumn’s umbrageous surprise

As it paints its’ outrageous feast for the eyes

On hickory and ash and oak,

A raucous explosion of colors,

Of  yellows and golds and reds

That all too soon transform your well-worn sidewalks

Into multicolored feather beds.

Boulevard!

You broad-shouldered beauty—

You’re an avenue with a point-of-view.