hes no bully
his lilywhite skin bears no scars
his nose aint bent or been broken his eyebrows are unstitched his soft soft
hands are hands of someone whos never worked with them other than to unzip his
fly or sign his name his fingers aint misshapen or knuckles scarred and swollen
from being busted
his fop of hair has never been greasy dirty
the creases in his neck have
never been lined with sawdust or dirt
hes no bully
what he is is the kid on the
playground who has the brand new white league ball the kid whos never played in
a pickup game with the balls horsehide torn off it and replaced strapped with shiny
black electricians tape snagged from one guys fathers garage or stolen out of an
unattended panel truck parked at the high curb along the parkway who if he cant
be a captain call the coin toss pitch or catch the bat and work his hands up it
to see who picks first bats first or if hes on the losing side or if hes called
out for cheating
he
threatens to take his ball and go home
Go home baby Wed rather play with a taped ball
1216, Saturday,
4 6. 16
