For Matthew Kearney

quincyk

Dad said he saw your car when out cycling in the rain earlier today, being driven by its current owner
I tried to make a joke, but it didn't work, and never will
I imagined it was actually you behind the wheel, crawling at snail's pace, cursing and waving, making sure that we were alright
I do that sometimes; make different realities, make everything alright just like it used to be
I still remember that June day when we laughed for the last time together in real time, I try to forget the following September
My last year of school was upon me, and everything started to crawl up into a messy hole of panic and confusion
You weren't that man we dressed in a fine suit, and kissed and carried as a light rain fell down upon the shoulder we'd exposed
Nor were you the man who woke to find his son burst through a windshield, and his grandson a stranger at his door
You were the man who laughed when I broke his window with a golf-ball, and cried when he argued with his wife
You were all the seasons rolled into one, you were Monday to Sunday, morning to night, best friend as well as grandfather
You said to me I was the young man, heck - even child, who saved his life, though we both knew it only prolonged it just for a little while
Even now, I still hear you tell the same stories, sound the same sighs, swear at the same faces on TV
Do you remember how you'd stop me on the street and get me to fix the watches of old-men? I miss changing the hours, I miss not having the old times
And do you remember I stayed off school, and you brought me for a meal and drink before taking me on a journey through your childhood, through little country-roads, byways and deserted lanes?
Now I only see you in brief outbursts of memories, reminded to me by old, sad songs, and I'm not afraid to cry
Remember that day in June, my young heart became that of an older man, and as they were about to close the doors of the ambulance, you gave me a thumbs-up with that wicked smile of yours.
When they were shut, I smiled too, but in that sad way one does when crying is not enough.
I hope I've been everything you thought I could have been, I hope you remember those days together when you were just as young as me.

MojoMaker

That was nice. Very poignant.

magicass

A real nice flow to your writing sir . It was very believable too. Anymore?