The Lords of Stanford Drive

The Lords of Stanford Drive

Tucked in a valley, somewhere upstate
‘Tween foothills of the Allegheny
Born at the dawn of the digital age
They were young, and wild, and free.

Bobby was a Big Wheel racer
Reigning champ of the farmers hill run
Spinning out when he reached the bottom
Pedaling faster for maximum fun

Keith could hit a mighty mean curveball
Knock the feathers off the fastest bird
Driving it straight out of the vacant lot
And he never left a ghost man on third

Joey was the tree-climbing master
Scaling pines with Tarzan-like grace
Never met a tree he couldn’t conquer
Forever reaching for outer space

There on the outskirts of Homer
Memories, so vividly alive
Time seemed to be frozen for
The Lords of Stanford Drive.

Each spring, they burst forth from cocoons
To chase the snow and gray gloom away
Trusting that the rising Easter sun
Would sustain them well into May

A ship out of water in Joey’s backyard
Grants them passage to Avalon
Fending off pirates with cardboard swords
Staying young while time marches on

There on the bow stood the mighty
Defying time just to survive
Time crept slowly onward for
The Lords of Stanford Drive.

They spent summers loose in the wild
Fourth of July at Calico Pond
Pulling crayfish from the creek
Skipping stones would forge their bond

Freedom was a gift of the era
Blazing trails to the local Kwik Shake
With only pennies and lint in their pockets
They feasted on candy and cake

There in the shadow of the eighties
Freedom would not be denied
Time ticked painfully forward for
The Lords of Stanford Drive.

Labor Day arrives in a jarring blink
Joey was called to man the grill
Evenings spent playing kick the can
‘Neath the cover of autumn’s chill

Just one more chance for adventure
Before the summer finally gives in
Riding in the back of the wagon
To catch Star Wars at the local drive-in

There at the dawn of adolescence
In the year 1985
Time began speeding up for
The Lords of Stanford Drive.

The days have now constricted
And wintertime has returned once again
Killing time in cold, damp basements
The Atari: their electronic friend

Christmas came without delay
Catalog dreams faithfully fulfilled
Rotary dialing each other the same day
To share the bounty amongst the Guild

There at the closing of the year
The echoes of past decades still thrive
Time had finally caught up to
The Lords of Stanford Drive.

Then one day, they went back inside
To conclude the fun of the day
No ceremony for the moment
The last time the three went out to play

Bobby moved to Indiana
For a time, they kept the fires alight
Eventually, the street would fall silent
As the day burned into the night