good humor

the ice cream truck

has a new jingle.

I hear it from the balcony.

this is throwing me off

my established equilibrium.

not that it’s a bad jingle.

It does its job by alerting

the kids to pester their parents

into enough money

to get out there and nab

the treat of the day.

not one kid seems bothered

by the new jingle.

all they know is the dripping

cones of chocolate and

the sunbursts of creamsicles

and the strawberry, vanilla,

raspberry swirl in a paper cup

with a little wood spoon sticking

out of it like the tongue Pinocchio

probably had hidden in his mouth.

the new jingle will take some

getting used to and I’m sure

I’ll get used to it in time,–– but

I think I’m going to miss a lot after I croak.

will Pluto dress more acceptably to become included?

will the panoramic windshield make its comeback?

will future ice cream trucks have a propeller on top?

and will their jingles play the oldies?