The County Fair Poem by Barry Middleton

When I was just a hometown kid
the county fair came round each fall
and I would ride the easy rides
and wonder what went on inside
the tent down near the end where men
would gather like chickens after corn.
I'd ride the easy rides and stay
within my brother's call as I
was told to do. It took me years
to deem myself a man and dare
to lift the musty skirt of that
remotest tent and swagger to
the ticket booth of deadly fun.
But how the thing did climb and dive,
it made me appreciate being alive.
And the girls in the corner tent?
Why they were that much better,
my eyes were that much older,
my eyes were that much wetter.