An open letter to the owner of a late model Subaru Outback

It is said the Aztecs were master astronomers,
orienting their great buildings
so the sunlight would fall through the narrow windows,
indicating special days and the arrival of seasons.

As I pull up to your snow encrusted wagon
with the “Visualize Whirled Peas” bumper sticker and an admonition
to think globally and act locally,
even though the Lake Effect is blowing sideways
and the 8” of snow on your car’s roof
is creating a weather system of its own,
I’m drawn to the Yucatan Peninsula,
imagining a solstice night where the moon cuts into view
through a small hole in the temple
Obviously put their on purpose.

The daydream ends to realize I’m staring
at the impossibly small space you have carved
on your back window
that somehow is allowing you to navigate.
I quickly pray that you are not actually an Aztec god
sent here on a mission, and without a snow brush,
to collect the souls of the wretched who drive behind
your intermittent brake lights.