What’s there to do in Modesto?
Does everything have to need money?
Yes, there is plenty and no, it does not!
Come along and take a walk with me,
If not side by side, at least stroll down
This paper lane of stairstep lines,
Then use that free and perfect exercise
For which your body’s well designed.
For those with an urban trailway bent,
There is the old Tidewater Railway Line,
Now the Virginia Corridor, and newly
Re-furbished along its four miles
With picnic spots, canopy shades,
Barbeques and bright garden plots.
What’s to do on this through-city path?
Push baby in the stroller, go for a run,
Have a sandwich and coffee, meet up
With friends for a chat and step out,
Let your dog take you along for fun,
Maybe ask of some new people there,
“What do you do in Modesto?”
For those of you with a naturely bent,
You could follow the Tuolumne River
Flowing along, at Gateway Parcel
Or other locales, or hike by Dry Creek
Along the Peggy Mensinger Trail—
Or roam circles around the urban groves
In any of your parks, with miles of
Paths for those who will seek them.
There’s a colorful cast of characters, sure,
Including yourself and your own gadabouts.
For those with a nostalgic bent,
You could circle that cluster of stars
Marked as the Legend of the Cruise,
With George Lucas and other folks named,
To mark that movie, stroll your memory lane
When classy cars formed informal parades,
When being seen and heard made the scene,
When boys will be boys to be roadsters for life.
Take your time to think of those times,
Then amble the streets for art, food and drink.
For those of you with a neighborly bent,
You could start from your home, turn right,
Then left, then do a random meander
Past houses and yards known and unknown,
Past people creating their fluid tableaus,
And perhaps chat with a neighbor to ask,
“What do you do for fun in this town?”
So up from the couch or that easy chair,
Out of the door, and out to the open air
Of both green and human natures;
Use that free, healthy exercise to ask,
How do I love and enjoy Modesto?
Take your mind for a good look around;
Let your footfalls discover the many ways.
