Wearing blue denim overalls
and a plaid flannel shirt,
Elmo tended garden
and worked in his shop.
He was handy using tools;
solved most problems without help.
He lived in the mountains.
His neighbors were dear.
Both intelligent and simple
in all things that he did,
he was private about opinions;
talked in an Oklahoma drawl.
He could barbecue a leg of lamb
or drink a beer or two.
Devoted to his wife, they sat
in the garden watching hummingbirds
and hawks. He built the house
they lived in; did all repairs himself.
Now that Elmo's passed away
I see him in the yard, secure
wearing work boots. His long white
beard neatly trimmed, his straw hat
at a tilt, wearing blue denim overalls
and a plaid flannel shirt.
