when blind might be kinder

it's easier not to see.
when eyes are closed
the creek that runs yellow
bubbles soft and clear

the sulfur from the long gone mine
is blue and bright with eyes shut tight,
blind can be kinder.

the jumble of jagger bushes and matted weeds
that choke the hillside and threaten the unused tracks
where coal cars rumbled paychecks through the night
smell green and sweet when blind is kind.

and memories are better
with eyes shut tight.