"Absolutely Nothing"

Once, on a yellow piece of paper with green lines, he wrote a poem and he called it

"Chops"

because that was the name of his dog and that's what it's all about.

And the teacher gave him an A and a gold star

and his mother hung it on the kitchen door and read it to his aunts.

This was the year Father Tracy took all the kids to the zoo,

and he let them sing on the bus.

And his little sister was born with tiny toes and no hair.

And his mother and father kissed a lot.

And the girl around the corner sent him a Valentine signed with a row of X's.

And he had to ask his father what the X's meant and his father always tucked him into bed

and was always there to do it.

Once, on a white piece of paper with blue lines, he wrote a poem and he called it

"Autumn"

because that was the name of the season and that's what it was all about.

And his teacher gave him an A and asked him to write more clearly.

And his mother never hung it on the kitchen door because of its new paint.

And the kids told him that Father Tracy smoked cigars

and left butts on the pews

and sometimes burned holes.

And that was the year his sister got glasses,

with thick lenses and black frames.

And the girl around the corner laughed when he asked her to go see Santa Claus.

And the kids told him why his mother and father kissed a lot

And his father never tucked him in bed at night

and his father got mad when he cried for him to do it.

Once, on a paper torn from his notebook, he wrote a poem and he called it

"Innocence: A Question"

because that was the question about his girl and that's what it was all about.

And his professor gave him an A and a strange steady look

And his mother never hung it on the kitchen door

because he never showed her.

That was the year Father Tracy died

and he forgot how the end of the Apostles Creed went.

And he caught his sister making out on the back porch.

And his mother and father never kisses or even talks.

And the girl around the corner wore too much make up

that made him cough when he kissed her

but he kissed her anyway

because that was the thing to do.

That's why on the back of a brown paper bag, he tried another poem and he called it

"Absolutely Nothing"

because that's what it was really all about.

And he gave himself an A and a slash on each damned wrist

And hung it on the bathroom door

Because this time,

he didn't think he could reach the kitchen.