159)
You need the rain,
sometimes,
because sometimes,
you need a day
to sit back
and let the gray sky
do its trick.
You need the rain
to wash away the subtle
and not-so-subtle debris
of our crazy little lives,
or perhaps
this is a sign of my age
creeping in
and as I share my appreciation
for a day when it’s okay
to do nothing
but take naps,
watch movies and, hopefully,
lay close to the one
who matters most,
I wonder what my younger version of self
would prefer to do
today.
You know?
160)
If you would have told me
or if you would have reached back
to find me at a time
when I wore different clothes
and wore a different hat,
and I mean this
as it applies to life,
or in the simplest way,
if you grabbed hold of my
younger and rebellious self
and asked,
what’s your idea
of a good Friday night?
Or if you found a way
to find the younger version of
me and said
this is what you will be like
at 52 — I’d have laughed
or shook my head and told you
go to hell,
put me in the ground
if that’s the case
and I’ll sleep when I’m dead.
I do not look at myself
as someone who grew old
or as someone who grew up
bur more,
I see myself now
as someone who prefers
not to waste time
at meaningless events
just to say,
I was there
or to be a part of something.
My time has value
and so does my life.
No, I suppose
at this point,
my appreciation for the sunrise
is not to stay out until dawn
but to rise before the sun
and see the first light,
just to say,
I am here,
and more than anything
I want to be part
of what comes next.
However,
if such an occasion
were to appear,
and you and I were able
to dance the night away,
or see the moon
from the upper deck of a cruise ship
and talk |
until the sunrise,
or if the fights were in town
or a good show was around
and you and I could get good seats,
I would love the chance
to howl with you
and be wild
and make it to our front door
just as the sun came up.
See this?
This is something
worth being tired for.
161)
Did I ever tell you
about a scuffle that almost happened
at a candy store?
I’m telling you,
this almost came to blows,
as in, like for real . . .
and I might not have made it
out of the store alive
if it were not for
my cunning ability
to speak in a strong way.
I was making my way
to the section to
bag your candy
and pay by the pound,
or more specifically,
I was about to grab a good lump
of sour rainbow ribbons
when I was pushed
and scoffed at by someone
looking to get to the sour ribbons
before me.
Don’t let the age fool you,
I may be old but this little kid—
he meant business
and I knew this when
he told me
get out of my way
old man, and then
he said something like
old people need to wait.
Old people???
Okay
Now, I do not support
the ass-beating of
a ten or an eleven-year-old kid,
but he was ready to square up
when I said,
oh yeah?
Well ya know what I can do
that you can’t?
The little man
looked at me defiantly
as if he had the upper hand
and by the way,
I just heard him ask his mother
permission to get more candy,
to which
he was advised not to eat them yet
because, of course; this would ruin his dinner.
I leaned my head forward,
as if to trump his position
and I told him –
I can buy any candy here
and eat it whenever I want.
Now go ask your mother
permission for the sour patch kids
in your pocket.
Damned kids.
But in fairness,
it’s not their fault—
they grew up without
Saturday morning cartoons,
and they never saw Bugs Bunny
or watched him give Elmer a beating
for getting out of line,
and they will never know
what could have happened
if Woody Woodpecker
went straight to the police.
(This would never have happened.)
Yeah,
I’m older now.
But I don’t act my age
or do I?
It’s funny
I did a lecture the other night
and I have another one tonight
about helping people
with their mental health.
Some people asked me
what do I do
if I wanted to work with kids.
I tell you no lie
when it comes to mental healthcare
and working with kids
and their behavioral disorders,
the biggest challenge is goddammit;
kids don’t listen and
they think they know
every goddamned thing.
By the way
do you know
what the biggest challenge is
when it comes to working with adults
and their behavioral
and emotional disorders?
Adults are just grown kids
and they don’t listen
and
they think they know
every goddamned thing.
So –
Grow up, kid.
It’s Thursday
and you have work to do.
Oh yeah?
I think I’d rather lay in bed
while it rains outside
and see if I can find some old
Woody Woodpecker reruns somewhere.
You know?
The Written Addiction 