Bad Hombre

Jimmy was being pulled By a hormone Through his turbulent adolescence. The hormone’s name was “Bob.” Bob was a bad hombre. He picked fights with little pimple-faced kids And then forced Jimmy to do all the dirty work Throwing punches and getting kicked in the eye and so forth. And Bob used to whisper nasty things in Jimmy’s ear About bras and garters and quivering thighs Jimmy got so excited He hung out at the pool hall, drank beer and punched holes In the cigarette machine. And the worst thing Bob did was tell Jimmy That he was a man. And Jimmy spent the rest of his misguided life Trying to prove it. (Previously published in Pigs 'n Poets, Feb-May 2000)