POEM OF THE WEEK

by Tom Miller - 01/12/99

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53

 

 

cards on the wall

each

only a dollar

to write a

name on the card and

tape it to the wall

in memory

ot those who have passed

from AIDS

 

1 bar

53 cards

53 people

53 dollars

 

 

 

*****

 

 

this is my friend

 

 

his name is william

was william

 

he's been hanging

on the wall now

3 weeks

 

next to the clock

 

it cost only

1 dollar

to buy the card and

write his name on it

 

i wrote his name in

magic marker

so it would stand out

 

among the

hundreds of other cards

 

on the wall

 

there is a

red heart

imprinted

on the cards

 

with a space

for the name

 

that is where i

wrote william's name

 

in the space

on the heart

 

and the dollar will go

to help other people

who have HIV or

AIDS

 

but i didn't know them

don't know them

 

i only know william

 

knew william

 

the cards

won't last very long

 

there will be other cards

or pictures or

new paint

 

they'll take the cards

 

and

throw

them

away

 

that was my friend

 

his name was william

 

what's yours?

 

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