| 6:34a |
@@@@@The knowledge of strength, the taunt at the
@@@@@The knowledge of strength, the taunt at the surrounding hills You know, I'll tell ya something, I don't believe in God
You don't mean that, Red!
(Underneath the blanket his father's body had been crushed almost flat Yeah, that's right, I just don't believe in God
Sometimes I don't either, Agnes says
Yeah, I can talk to you, you understand
Only you want to go away(There is the other knowledgeHer body is young and strong and he knows the smell of her breasts, which are like powdered infant-flesh, but all the women turn to cordwood in the town You take that guy Joe Mackey who got Alice with a kid and left her, my own sister, but I tell ya I don't blame himYou got to see that, Agnes
Yeah, that's rightIt's praise to the eighteen-year-old
Of course you can always depend on the mines to shut down
It's good for a week; there's hunting for jack rabbit and a ball game or two, but it loses its edgeThere's more time to be in the house, and it's all bedrooms except for the kitchenHis kid brothers are always making noises, and Alice is sullen as she nurses her bastardWhen he was working it was easier, but now he's with them all the time
I'm getting out of this town, he says at last
What? No, by God, no, his mother says(A short squat woman who has never lost her Swedish accent
I can't take it any more, I'm gonna rot my life away, Eric's old enough to work in the mines if they ever open
You're not going to tell me! he shoutsWhat the hell does a man get out of it, some food for his belly?
Soon Eric works in the mines
He slaps his cup against the saucer |