Hardscrabble Atoms

Houston, Mississippi

Small towns are not for escaping, mind you,

but for swallowing, easier for their diminutiveness,

with all that compact goodness dissolving to run

the long blood canals to faraway places with strange sounding names.

Sure, small towns have their downsides,

but nothing like the monster metropolis pills that

lodge so easily in the back of the throat.

Chris Jones, powered by Houston hardscrabble atoms,

ripped through offensive lines one by one,

all the way north to Kansas City, that humming cluster

of a thousand Houstons bunched up tight

into the cradle of the Missouri River,

and by such became the much-admired hero

for a huddle of young wide-eyed dreamers

roaming Church Street, storming heaped-up

piles of leaves raked into their three-point stances,

yard after yard, without anyone having taught them,

passing another afternoon in the waning days of Autumn.

Notes:

Chris Jones, the all-star Kansas City Chiefs Defensive Tackle, grew up in the small town of Houston, Mississippi, sleeping on the couch at his grandmother’s house on Church Street during his high school years. Jones remains actively involved in Houston, Mississippi. At one point he donated $200,000 to Houston High School, making a substantial impact on the education and opportunities available to the students. Jones's contributions have not only transformed the school but also inspired the local community.

https://youtu.be/6_HNtI7Ogkc?si=VcdZJMw1TQJUN-eZ