[the photo is of Sierra City, California, population 225, elevation @ 4,250 feet above sea level]
Ballad of the Micro-Town
The mountains round that town are sheer
Massifs of stone. The town
Lies glinting like a coin below.
The river carves a frown.
I grew up there, so it was all.
It was the world to me.
That it and I were less than small
I'd learn eventually.
To have grown up in a small town
Is such a micro-fate,
A shrunken destiny, at best,
A morsel of time's bait.
If you are from a micro-town,
Bravo to you from me.
Our origins have blessed us with
Well known obscurity.
Hans Ostrom Copyright 2008
