Peaches

His liver like a lace doily alcohol pickled him thin He'd been turned down, all over town no one ever took him in

There was an old man, I once knew

Peaches was the name he used

He was the drunk, set on our trunk

his body old and abused

 Sharing his beer with an old horse

who caroused in the end stall

Each day by three, they'd walk by me

and stumble but never fall

 

His liver was a lace doily

alcohol pickled him thin

He'd been turned down, all over town

no one ever took him in

He drank his beer with ole Nellie

she could tip a bottle too

Swig and sway,  like Don Quixote

as they staggered, swirling, brew

 

We were headed for the races

this blustery afternoon

Each planned the trip, we had to ship

I knew we'd be leaving soon

From where we trained at the fairground

we carted them to the track

Where all would race, and take what place

each earned in front or in back

 

Peaches rode in back of the truck

so he could drink the whole way

My uncle said, he'd soon be dead

drinking had seen his decay

We sat apart from others there

he and I were best of pals

He'd tell me tales, of life’s travails

while I ogled all the gals

 

That day he shared a sordid tale

of pain he caused his own son

He had shouldered blame, bore the shame

for this thing that he had done

Back when he was just a young man

a pillar of support

He took his boy, his life’s great joy

to play their favorite sport

 

They went to a picnic that day

he had drank one too many

On the way, to watch his son play

of fears he hadn't any

His boy was riding in the back

not thinking they skipped the seat belt

He'd rolled his car, the door ajar

surprise was all he had felt

 

His boy was tossed out in a field

sweet clover of timothy

The child's light hair, seen lying there

 remembered so vividly

"I was a Veterinarian"

said Peaches to my surprise

"I went insane, called out in vain

but God never heard my cries"

 

"So now I ride where I belong

In back of my self-made bar

Hoping he, will come to take me

by tossing me from the car"

 Just then a tear fell from his cheek

the pain enveloped me too

Here cried a man, much deeper than

any of us ever knew

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Author's Note

Who can truly say that only they know the heart of another soul? The sad truth of this is that it is a true telling of an actual event.The people I met through the years engrained their stories in my mind. Where I wrote them down and stored them. All I met there were at odds with life. So I suppose judge not lest you be judged. With Peaches I realized his fascination with me was partly my youth and part my resemblance to the treasure he had lost. May he find peace in his afterlife so denied him in life.

Reviews

[Kristallo]

"Here cried a man, much deeper than
any of us ever knew" This has a wonderful message, it reminds me so much of Shakespeare's "The Comedy of Errors" where Adriana says (one of my favorite Shakesperian quotes"

A wretched soul, bruised with adversity,
We bid be quiet when we hear it cry;
But were we burdened with like weight of pain,
As much or more would we ourselves complain

This man deeply lamented a horror from his past, and in consuming guilt, he consumed alcohol to assuage his inner torment- and others throughout the town would never bother to guess his reasons for being a drunk, it's easier and more fun to just mock him for his weaknesses. Society is a vicious thing. I really enjoyed reading this, Tate, it's very well written and such a strong piece. Glad I happened upon your writings tonight! Great work.

[Coyote Poetry]

We never know the reasons why someone gave up. I enjoyed the story of this man. Many reason to give up. Losing a child is one of them. Thank you for sharing the powerful story in the poem.
Coyote

[Nautili]

wow. You have such a gift for telling a story, and having it rhyme and also flow so perfectly! This is all the more sad for being based on a true event. It also throws the punch not to judge- for we seldom have the whole story.

[Emrick]

You got your own style of writing.This is nice.Very nice.
Its an interesting poem.
The fourth stanza line two and four are my favorite.I like they ryhme.

(You should start a class on here of teaching young stars like me on how to be a good poet.I know nothing about the 2x4line quatrains,ya.things like that.

[Dane Osborne]

There are two sides to every story. Everybody likes to say that but nobody really believes it. You have a rare and intelligent view of humanity, Tate and it shows very strongly in this piece. I know a lot of people from the other side of the track who would have a bad name in most people's minds either by reputation or association or even just appearance. But Flaws have a lot to do with what we are taught about them as with everything else. Beneath the surface of the negative associations that come when you experience flaws then you'll see a human being with a story. People forget that.

Actually one of the more highly intelligent people I ever met was a multiple felon who my stepdad was friends with. He had been in and out of prison for his whole life. He never had been out any longer than six months without going back in. If you seen him you would think that he was a rough customer and you would think right. You could say that he had an "institutionalized" mentality. But yet he was very well read and self educated for his circumstances. He read things like Charles Dickens, Oscar Wilde, and John Steinbeck. He said his favorite book was Marco Polo's travels. He had an amazing knowledge of history. When I was a small kid he would sit and completely educate me on the Cuban revolution, Mao and the Chinese communist revolution, Lenin and Stalin. He also liked to talk about Ghenghis Khan and Alexander the Great.

As a precocious young kid, he really made an impact on me and opened my mind up to a lot of different subjects that I otherwise would not have learned/heard about back then.

It just goes to show that you can't always judge people by the surface. Especially when the surface is often being sold.

[EMMIE]

Wow I was captivated from start to end. Your skills of story telling are AMAZING! It's not always easy to write a poem, which tells a story in that form. This is a great way to sum up your personal experiences through life so creatively. Amazing job!

[*** Hey Jude***]

Even though there is a distinct sadness in this piece, I feel Love throughout. Such a warm tale about a man that in life carried such agony , yet never surrendering completely in life!

Sharing realities you have wonderfully woven this story about a man that had much richness in his heart-rending life. This tender poem is a slpendid reminder, as the last statement offers such truth and should be remember when we have time we ‘think” we know suffering.

“Here cried a man, much deeper than
any of us ever knew”

Another great addition to your collection! ~ :-)

[Geraldine]

Yay! This is really an awesome write. I love the narration and the imagery that you have showed. And the structure was really really good.

[Sanjeeta Sharma Pokhar..]

Amazing Narrative Poem...Awesome creation!