Poems Meant as Secrets #3
Arthur, 1963 or thereabouts
Arthur,
dear dead flamboyant Arthur
who did not live long enough to slowly die of Aids
Arthur,
dead dead flamboyant Arthur
knew enough not to say
that the only people who truly appreciated young boys
were old ragged
Queens like him
and that nobody
appreciated the old Queens
especially not the young Queens,
most of whom would not stay the cold rugged course
would only have the memory of Maxine’s
and the drunken Piano players within
and keep this part of their life secret
from the women they would marry
over all the hairy years
Arthur
whose face looked like a ridge
was well past the age of unpaid love
and could not bring himself to pay
so he was with George and other friends
where young boys would congregate
and some would join him
in a dark corner of the cellar
in the waiting of the bathroom
Arthur was retired
and did not need to work
though all of this
sometimes felt like it
Arthur
loved Maxine’s
where he could buy drinks for youngers
and pretend
it might lead to something
One of us should
of spent a night with him
not for the pleasure of it
but because it would give him pleasure
and isn’t that what love is
doing something homely
for reasons of beauty
Arthur
would not of liked the term Pederast
after all,
he would have reasoned,
he never asked for an age card,
and he never used force
nor seduction
he was just there
available
unlike the young women of the proper age
he might even define it as a service
and most of us would have agreed then
and some now
and some now
And any harm that was done
if such there be
was far less than the daily knives
we got at our homes
where there were monsters
who truly loved us
and knew how to kill and revive
kill and revive
on a daily basis
9-1-02
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About bobsmall1
Bob Small has read at Bacchanal, Barnes and Noble, Borders,
The Booksource (Swarthmore), The Clark Park Festivals,Community College of Philadelphia
Highwire Gallery, The Mad Poets Annual Food Fest Reading,
The Middle East Restaurant, Nexus GalleryThe Painted Bride Arts Center,
The Philadelphia Ethical Society, Robin's Bookstore
The University of Pennsylvania and also in New York City,
Trenton, NJ, Washington, DC, and in many Delaware Valley Venues.
He is the author of numerous chapbooks, including
El Otro Lado (with Maralyn Lois Polak), On watching America Die,
Small Steps and Toes (with Lamont B. Steptoe), and The Unapoet.
This is his first Reading in over a year.
Bob Small was Founder and President of the
two decades old Poets and Prophets,
which presented Poetry Readings
in both Delaware County and Philadelphia.
Bob was the Chair of The Delaware County Green Party and was the
First Green Party Candidate in Delaware County (2005).
He was also a Green Party National Delegate, among other duties.
He is the Founder and Facilitator of
The Pennsylvania Ballot Access Coalition (PaBac),
which is a Coalition of both Independents and Third Parties.,
seeking to legislatively improve Pennsylvania's Ballot Access Laws. (Facebook)
Bob is also a founding member and
Facilitator of Democracy Unplugged, and Delco Debates,
which has presented Independent and Third Party Forums in Delaware County since 2004. Facebook)
He was formerly involved with Cinema Resistance, and Delco Pledge of Resistance.
Bob currently lives in Swarthmore with his wife
and their menagerie of animals.
He is currently focused on writing a Novel and organizing his Poetry, which he posts on his Blog (Bob Small1). He is retired from most of the above activities, except Delco Debates and Poets and Prophets, which he may return to.
robertthesmall 