Road warrior

The headlights are gone,
and silver rims look out
from a car face
where hood and grill
no longer quite align.
The steering wheel sits jaunty
awaiting new direction,
or perhaps a companion to slide in
and while away the time,
while a way behind the bumper,
a wire drops, uncoiled,
anchor to
home ground.
The car face smiles
friendliness.
It doesn’t take itself
or the road
so seriously
that it can’t enjoy the sun
—while other cars
race on,
down roads
always receding
through their windshields.
Road warrior, it dreams
of roads still unexplored,
remembering what it has learned
from highways, bumps,
journeys into the outback,
offroad,
and smiles
to itself,
watching for
new chances
headed its way.