‘so late, not much light!’ he said,

having just recognized I wanted to throw my bag down,

get there

and thus, charging me quite a bit more.

I knew from the shadows already on the desk I had a good 40 minutes.

but didn’t know how far away that place,

that place

was.

my bag was thrown down on the hard bed,

with no thought that my expensive were in it.

into a car,

to the gate,

not one eye blinking at the $64 dollar entrance fee.

past the tombs,

that usually I’d stop for.

it wasn’t a run, more of a power-walk.

I could run in croc’s,

this I, Tim and a ex-girlfriend’s stalker know.

but I wouldn’t.

unless the sun began to recline.

and into the valley, with it’s brown and red and yellow highlights.

the tour groups following the flag up the other way,

‘poor man’ they must have thought, had they not been thinking about their bus seats.

but that was okay,

I didn’t care what I looked like.

there was a place, a simple place,

that I’d been wanting to see ever since Indiana saw it.

a silly reason for going? maybe to you.

maybe to me.

around this corner? no – more corners.

past an opening,

and another bend.

it had to be close,

it had to be close.

and then…

it was.

peeking around that warped door,

there it was.

brother, I’ve seen some things.

and been mildly impressed.

but this,

this,

this was something.

so landlord, play that movie one more time,

I want to see where they stood,

so I can too.

a silly boy who’d been dreaming about this for a while.

and then I’ll go to bed, I promise.

cause there’s a man with a beard who I promised a cigarette,

there’s a road to it that I kind of know now.

and there’s a place in a rock that I need to touch once more in the morning,

to be reconfirm that I’m there

and reaffirm that it’s still there too.