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reaping the lull
by Philip F De Pinto
we were draftees - he and I.
inducted in the identical day - he
from the south west - I from the north east.
as with all inductees - we had our
eight weeks worth of basic brainwashing
followed by a month or so
of the more advanced kind.
and so we - he and I
find ourselves in this puddle strewn field
reaping the lull of war
exulting in our trenches
and he leaning in my ear - whispering hey Yank!
are you aware
I quarterbacked my high
school football team? - so
why don't you go
out for a pass
and make it long.
this sounded like a
wonderful way to break
from the doldrums
and I - leaning in his ear
whispered - hey Johnny! ain't that just
the funniest coincidence?
but I was a linebacker
on my high school
football team,
and a linebacker
going out for a pass
would be illegal - long or short.
by virtue he outranked me by a stripe
I had no choice but to venture out
for the long one as he ordered
and in so doing leaped most spectacularly
in the end zone making the catch
of my life. life? ah there's the rub.
for in so making that
spectacular grab -
a grenade by any other name
I burst
like pollen
in the wind.
01/22/2013 Posted on 01/22/2013
Copyright © 2024 Philip F De Pinto
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