Before the likes of Tyson
This was the farmers town
Up and down north Lexington
Real goods sold all around

Yes we dealt in poultry
Three generations worked the shop
Near feed stores and the market
A fixture on the block

Eggs, butter, honey
Country hams on the wall
Of course the fresh killed chickens
Sold the best of all

Some squawking down the alley
Trying to take flight
To escape a certain fate
Of a supper table night

A family of bee-keepers
I trimmed the honey comb
Within the wealth of sourwood
I always felt at home

Economy you can see and touch
Thats what I grew up knowing
And still today I like to think
Of honey bees and sowing

Rip “boy”

I took this in Asheville, NC with my iPhone. Of course the bright artwork initially caught my attention, but the poem that’s so neatly scripted really ties it all together. I interpret it as them talking about what industries like Tyson Foods has done to small mom-and-pop type businesses here in America. They’re longing for the way of life they experienced as a kid.

I benefit from and depend on big industry as much as anybody else. But it does feel like we have taken a few steps back in regards to what is best for us as a country, and from a health standpoint sometimes. This quote I saw the other day ties into that thought pretty well:

“For most of human history, vehicles had automatic collision avoidance and could even take you home when you were sleeping or drunk. Then we got rid of the horse.”