a friend of mine is released from jail

they let a friend of mine
out of jail
3 days before Christmas
this year…
…he wasn’t a bad man,
he was a fine man
in some ways

he could
quote Shakespeare
like only
an educated
old drunk can
AND
he could speak at length
about Gauguin
because he liked painting
and he enjoyed,
drinking
vodka interspersed with
the occasional glass of
old red wine

late at night

while Haydn played
on the stereo
He was…
an accomplished
Old Hippie
who had attended
Woodstock
and in his later years
he’d become
…a savvy investor
who’d lost a fortune
to Wall Street
and said he
didn’t miss any of it
not him
Citizen of the World
a guy who
enlivened
dinner parties
and
sometimes,
spoke passionately
of the simple pleasures
of life in the country
a man who enjoyed
illegal cigars
and drank wine that
few could afford,

…but he did 15 months
in the can…

he didn’t kill anyone
…didn’t rob anyone
…didn’t swindle anyone
or profess to be
a Doctor of Dentistry
or engage in a false
medical practice in some
rented garage in
Hialeah

he didn’t say
that he could
cure ailments
or heal wounds
or lead you to Jesus
he didn’t sell
dope
or guns
or religious paraphernalia
or hashish pipes
but he went to jail
anyway
…thankfully…
the
felonious
bastard…

damed old drunks
shouldn’t drive