With My Heart in My Mouth

It was a grey cloud dawn t-shirt morning when I started the truck and headed north on my fortnightly Albany - Bunbury - Albany run. 17kms north of Barker I leave the busy highway and head nor-west to pass through the symmetry of Franklands grapes and olive groves. The road is my own as the sunrise clouds clear to show the shadows pointing towards my destination.
A Red Tail Black Cockatoo peels away to the left as I smile at its rare beauty.

I load up in Bunbury and point the truck towards the south, I'm coming home.

The sun light dappled road is strewn with the days carnage. Kangaroo and wallaby carcass compete with swirling green blue feathers never to soar again. Lizards and snakes discarded like tyres bleed into the road.

10kms east of Frankland the wide straight road inscribed with skid marks sounds a fearful warning. A car crashed wrapped around an unforgiving tree.



Fingers drawn through window dust spell out "Driver OK".






My heart is in my mouth knuckles white from the wheel long after I step safely from the cab at my home by the sea.