twenty years of abuse and neglect
of child soldiering
of suicide attempts
all in one memoir

the nice kids ‘cross the table
sit slacked-jaw in shock
wondering aloud
about a movie
about a limited series
romancin’ my intellectual property

shit, what do they know
no one ever put a gun to their heads
no one ever raped them
ain’t never been homeless

just lookin’ for content
searchin’ for the next big thing
that’s not wearin’ a cape
’cause no one can compete
with Marvel
and Netflix is big right now

me?
writer
survivor
psychologist
healing and evolving
even thirty years later

still, i love the game
of being a hollywood pitch boy
of sittin’ with ’em for those wonderful five minutes
when everythin’ is real

from ‘cross our table they make promises that time and circumstances repeatedly erode and disappear
everywhere but in my soul

copyright 2019: all rights reserved
photo: two lights at night (Tioga, PA: November, 2019)