Jim
by Peter M. Gordon

After midnight at our thirty-fifth reunion I
Walked away from the disco DJ and open bar
Into a flagstone-covered side courtyard

Ten gargoyles crouched on cornices
Leered while I hummed the
Melody Jim taught me

The four brick walls and threadbare
Oak looked the same as when
Jim wrapped harmonies

Around my thin reedy notes
Giving me permission to sing

Just after our twenty-fifth reunion
Hushed words flew between classmates

I e-mailed him to say I’d pray
He died anyway
Without a word or song from me

I lifted my voice one last time
From the depths of this stone well

Jim strolled out from his old entryway
Harmony bounced off stone sconces

We sang oldies until dawn painted
The sky rose and vermillion

Jim went ahead back inside
Like he always did
Waited for me to follow

 

Peter M. Gordon has worked as a theatre director, writer, teacher, television programmer, and producer. He always loved reading poetry, and began writing poetry a few years ago when an essay he was writing about his oldest son came otu as a poem. He lives in Orlando, Florida, where he’s a member of the First Monday Poetry Group. Peter’s poems most recently appeared in 34th Parallel Magazine and in “Poetry to Feed the Spirit.” Peter also writes a content development blog: http://www.myprogramidea.blogspot.com