Diamond in the Rough

[couchgrouch]

Diamond in the RoughSchool'd been out a week or twous kids goofed off with nothing to dotill a field where just thistles grewgave me an ideame n the gang cleared the worst awaybut we still needed one more to playI got teased when I asked freckle-facedMariabut with an old ant-hill for a moundwe played ball till the sun went downon the diamond in the roughour World Series in the weedstorn up t-shirts for jerseysand Sears low-tops for kleatsto keep it broken inI'd sleep on my gloveand nothing shined in my dreamslike the diamond in the roughwell, those stickers always hurtsliding into second or thirdthough we kept score with marks in the dirtit wasn't about winningMaria proved she had nothing to provegrand slamming over old man Johnson's roofthen slowly but surely our lives movedone more inningschool started and summer was gonesoon just blowing leaves ran the bases onthe diamond in the roughwe'd be out there at sunrisehitting rabbits with groundersand pigeons with pop-fliesto keep it broken inI'd sleep on my gloveand nothing shined in my dreamslike the diamond in the roughit's been years since Maria married meand there's a Mega-Mart where it used to bebut when we shop there all we seeis the diamond in the roughthe diamond in the rough...(c)2005 Robert George