"My Name's Johnny Cade"-A Poem for Johnny
A small dark boy runs out of a house
That's practically a shack
A pot-bellied man's bellows disturb the air
But the teenager never looks back
I watch as this boy runs down the street
And wonder what I can do
I've seen what this young man is running from
But where in the world is he running to?
I debate, then take off after him
He doesn't run for very long
He pants, turns to me and I think,
What the hell is wrong?
I ask the boy how old he is
He says, "I just turned sixteen."
"That's how old I am," I say
He asks me what I've seen
I realize he's referring to the yelling man
"Nothing," I lie, and he sees through it
He says, "He's threatening to kill me again,
I wish he'd go ahead and do it."
I tell him he shouldn't talk like that
That he's too young to die
He laughs bitterly and says, "What do you care for anyhow?
I'm just some regular guy."
I see his big black, innocent eyes
I notice that he has a dark tan
I smile at him, and he smiles back
And then I grab his hand
"Would you like to go out sometime?" I ask,
"I think you're kinda cute."
He looks very shocked at my proposition
And continues to remain mute
"You'd wanna go out after seeing that?"
He finally asks, looking at his home
"Of course," I say, smiling at him.
"You don't have to feel alone."
"Oh, I have real close friends," he says,
"Maybe I'll introduce you guys."
"I'd like that," I say with a radiant smile
He grins too, the smile reaching his eyes
"I won't forget about that date."
Is the promise that he has made
As we part ways, he suddenly turns and says,
"By the way, my name's Johnny Cade."