7 men walk into Deep Pool
an outlaw motorcycle club
the man in the red leather jacket
stood with his back against the wall
and every once in a while
for reasons
unknown
he'd yell,
"just nobody touch, Toad."
i push past Toad
on my way to the men's room
and as i'm pissing
i think about Ron
he trapped rats in corners
then let them go
slapped angels in the face
and ihe craziest things he'd say
like
"the smartest rats
always get out of the maze first,"
he'd give you a knowing nod
throw down a shot
and walk away
but like a miracle
he had you wondering
ron dreamed of the angels
who stand under vapor street lights
at 4 a.m.
or sit on barstools til closing
but love is never
what it ought to be
and he lived his life
like a circus high wire walker
wandering back and forth
day after day
and one day
he disappeared
like the rabbit in magicians hat
now,
Ron was a warrior
he drew to the inside straight
to sunlight fading
and outside the 7-11
where his x-wife worked
with a pair of her nylon stockings
he hung himself