On the way to a new life in
la Florida
we made a stop in Saint Augustine
oldest city in our America
A side trip to visit la
Fortaleza de San Marcos
the striped lighthouse
cobblestoned plaza
and of course
Ponce de Leon’s Fountain of Youth
A teenager, I didn’t want youth
I wanted the age when I would
be free
Go out and stay out
long as the night
Drive, drink, drink and drive
The unearned freedom of adults
Still it was intriguing …
Could the waters restore,
Preserve, rejuvenate?
Fantasy, history, myth
emblazoned on billboards
I remember a long narrow lane
shaded by strange, massive trees
their canopy touching overhead
Spanish moss making mysterious
the old roadside attraction
Everything old
A crumbling, putrid well
No fountain at all
Was de Leon as disappointed as I?