down the road

even after all these
years, all these
miles, we still wash
and polish
the car, keeping it new,
or at least appearing
to be new.
we fill
the tires with air,
gas it up.
a quart or two of 10-40
goes down
the gulley.
a coat of turtle wax
from stem to stern,
using the chamois cloth
we go at it in the summer
sun.
an air freshener
on the mirror.
a wipe
against the dashboard,
we vacuum the floors,
in between
the seats.
we straighten up
the trunk. we comb
our hair in the rear view mirror.
buckle up
and we're ready.
it's not new anymore, but
hey,
it'll get us down
the road.