tv land

you fall into the habit
of tuning on the television
when you get home,
bone weary from work.
a sandwich, a glass of milk.
you take your shoes
off and sit on the couch
feet up.
you watch an entire episode
of Gunsmoke,
a show you never watched
when it was really on.
but now you're engaged.
the horses, the dust and
hills. the moral mini
drama unfolding slowly
before your eyes. it's not
Shakespeare or Mamet,
or Eugene O'Neil, but
it has its place.
sometimes you fall asleep
before it's over.
someone gets shot,
Matt gets his man, Kitty
blinks her blue eyes
and smiles, no one important
dies,
and Festus says something
clever in the end.