Buddy

I got your letter late evening of last day,

the one in which you told me you’ll be visiting soon

and it caught me so off guard, reading your name after so long,

that I had to wait to write back till the next afternoon

It would be amiss to not rant about the eternity it’s been

because you know me, and I tend to sit and dwell

So, as much as I know you’re not one to reminisce

Indulge me this once, and hear what I’ve got to tell

First, day broke rainy and gray again here,

As most days have since you’ve been gone;

And as much as I’ve tried to overcome and keep it inside,

I must tell you, I’ve never felt so alone

It’s been years now, old friend, since we shared the laughs,

laughs that drip-dropped in our own rainfall of chatter

I know you told me when you left it was all a matter of time,

but what you never said, was how much time matters.

It’s been decades, pal! Years and years have flown by!

What’s become of those two young fools we used to be?

T-shirts untucked, hair uncombed, shoes untied,

Swimming drunk in our decadent pools of glee.

These hands, which pushed you to ask your sweetheart to prom,

buddy, they’ve grown a bit weaker since then

And your hands, which rumpled my hair jokingly everyday

would find some strands missing if they were to try it again

The irony, buddy, don’t tell me you can’t see the irony here!

We used to laugh at the old man down the street alone on his chair,

all the while screaming, like misguided little devils, that life,

our jejune lives, could never possibly lead us there

Now, understand this little tirade of mine holds no qualms against you

For you have been as much a puppet in all this as I

The only purpose my comments serve is to marvel that despite all that,

our bond is not one to so easily die

In closing, just know that I’ve missed you, and await your visit eagerly

to perhaps enjoy some coffee as our journeys meet at this bend

And maybe kids who happen to chance upon us and poke fun

Should instead learn of what it truly means to have a friend.