As longtime Arizona Highways readers know, we used to publish reader-submitted poetry in the magazine. We no longer do so, but we still receive occasional submissions from readers. One of them, Paul L. Prough of Lewistown, Pennsylvania, submitted this one. We hope you enjoy it.
Native American Trucker
By Paul L. Prough
Eight-teen wheels drove down the road
carrying a great big heavy load;
with lots of lights in front and back
and a sign on its door that read Applejack.
The man behind the wheel that day
had a nice little home in Santa Fe.
He drove long distance back and forth,
sometimes south and sometimes north.
He started driving at age forty-two
and drove his truck like a buckaroo.
He had a wife and a son to support
and always liked being at his own homeport.
He had been in the Service for twenty good years
and learned his trade with the Corps of Engineers.
He once saved his squad and called a hero
and was proud of his heritage as a true Navajo.