Lights of Home

Full moon and morning star
Lead me home to my darlin'
Headlights burnin' through
Swirlin' fog an' stirred up dust
Engine thrums my impatience
Up a hill an' down the holler
Crawlin' round that tight ol' bend
Patience worn an' razor thin
Eyes a squintin' hard
Round a corner another bend
Just there now... can't you see
Through the thick an' shelterin' trees
There, just there - look right close
Oh, yes... the lights of home.







Copyright 2012 Stephen Hollen is a storyteller living in Ohio, telling Appalachian stories and writing some ragged verse.

Muggy Morning

The promise of dawn is already summer muggy
Trees rustle with an autumn dryness
Sinking their roots deeper into parched earth
The birds that will sing good morning are asleep still
Savoring the infrequent gusts of wind
The first hints of morning are almost unwelcome
It promises to be a hot, uncomfortable day
A farmer rises early, unable to sleep
Hitches up his overalls and steps outside
Scanning the horizons for any sign of rain
His hopes of a storm, for a cooling mist
Sink low with each blink of his eyes.
It is summer, hot, uncaring summer.

Oh Appalachia

Oh, Appalachia!
How I love thee.

How my heart sings
Sweet, slow harmonies

In time to the rhythm
Sounding deep within your hills.











copyright 2012  Stephen Hollen   www.stephenhollen.com

Early Morning Back Roads

An early morning drive
Over back roads
Down country paths 
So long ago taken.

Celestial Shades

The morning sky was washboarded
With red and orange hued clouds
As if God was raising celestial shades
Pulling back the curtains on a glorious day.











 Stephen Hollen is an award winning storyteller, humorist and Mark Twain Impersonator living in Beavercreek, Ohio.  He performs and tells stories in Dayton, Cincinnati, Columbus and all through Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Tennessee, West Virginia, Michigan and throughout the USA.