/

A Well-Known Stranger to Many

I am sucker punched by a segue
caught off-guard
without a leg to stand on
chuckling at the memory
of the boredom
that permeated the classroom
that afternoon
however many years ago
with its mitten tree
and Escobar's missing mitten
among the ornaments
each with its own story
though none
satisfied my curiosity
which continued to morph
into the evening
triggering an episode
of restless legs
a syndrome common
among hall monitors
who on the word
of a news anchor
move their diversified
portfolios elsewhere
and later
in some strange and bullish way
are as thankful as the man
at the vegetable stand
who has this habit of shouting
to passing motorists
that he's seen worse -
worse than that smidgen of promise
in our otherwise desultory lives -
lives misspent in the off-hours
drilling down deeply
at the drop of a hat
fretting over
the indifference of gas guzzlers -
an illusion put upon us
by that well-known stranger to many.


ICU  by Tom Corrado