At T's funeral
Fat Carlo took his shoes off
first thing
and he did it with that secret little smile of his
. . . watching . . .

He stretched out the laces all crooked
like mangled snakes
mud-brown and sickly pistachio-green
with aglet heads worn down to
nubs
right in front of everyone
. . . goading . . .

The wound on his big toe
'that don't never heal'
is a trophy of his careless barefoot run
with his crip-dog
Hopsack
and that violent tantrum after reading
Colosimo's political column
in the Daley Herold
about democrats stealing water shares
. . . seething . . .

Chalk up Fat Carlo's actions
to his constant fits of
revenge
and his hillbilly upbringing
. . . prodding  . . .

And, it's because he won't listen to Paola's demands
about keeping his shoes on in public
or not picking his teeth with a safety pin --
always riding him in lowdown ways
. . . taunting  . . .

Just keep praising Paola
for her stupid things
like O-Cedar-waxing the casket
or the raspberry-Renuzit-spray-shower
she gave the mortuary
before the service
'just in case'
. . . showboating  . . .

Carlo gets mad whenever he hears
anyone complement his Paola --
but
do it anyway
'cause
it really gets to him
and if you make Paola smile
she might give you a slice
of her special mocha cake
later
after we're all done grievin'
. . . faking . . .