Just when we ran out of asphalt
The first raindrops fell
They hit the ground like airstrike invaders and made the dust dance
We smiled at the baby Dresden and crunched through the gravel
When I downshifted for Spaghetti Bend we thought we heard a tiny jangle
And sure enough
The clutch linkage
Again
We managed to coast under an apple tree to wait out the attack
While I scrounged under the seat for a nut close enough to maybe crossthread on
And when I slithered undercover to do the deed you hummed that mystery waltz
The one we never figured out where it came from
But it worked its magic one more time and next thing
We were waltzing in that rusty pickup bed
With the dog and the tools and the rain on our heads
And we laughed all the way home in three quarter time in second gear