Dad had a terrible lawn mower
that screeched & rumbled & roared
it had two enormous steel rollers
and blades that dragged it forward

it had a long black cable like a tail
that played out across the grass
and I used to see how long I dared stay
in its loops as the monster went past

who knows where that old mower is now
Dad these many years dead
while I stand in the loops as it thunders down
and the swifts scream high overhead