The Perfect Group Chat

The four gas stations on each of the corners

Hover over the town,

But they don’t define it.

It doesn’t define us,

Neither does the churches

With clipped voices and narrowed eyes.

Or the neighbors boring into your soul,

Searching like you're a specimen to be dissected.

They want you to look at the heavens and confess the sin of life

Because life is sin when all they notice from you is your mistakes.

Except for when you look around the corner,

And cut through the shrubs,

And wade through the lakes,

Rivers,

Mountains,

Streams,

And fight away the frost that blisters at your eyelashes

Just so you find People.

They smile and hug you tight because never will they let go of family.

The perfect family with group chats and memes,

And plans for the future,

Dazzling stars to chase,

And awards to win

While they raise each other to the sky.

But not for heaven’s clouds and sunlight arches-

This is heaven for us already.

Even with its terrible food and overpriced groceries,

And small-town appeal meshed with too many people being crammed together,

Into one town—

It's still a town with a family

Who accept you and laugh at your stupid jokes

Who plan Halloween costumes for the group.

Even though they still need to count down five more months

They never stop caring and will never let go of your hand

As you fall away from this heaven.

As you figure out that

None of the roads,

Or houses,

Or buildings 

Define it…

We do