as a boy my father bought me a rabbit
I loved it as any child would....
I cared for it...worried about it...
protected it from dogs....
the rabbit died of suffocation
when I was ten I found a snake
a beautiful shinny green snake
lying in the sun.....
I took it as a pet.....cared for it
protecting it from cats and dogs....
the snake died of suffocation
at fourteen I had my first hero
his batting average was.307
he played third base....I had his card
I never traded it for anyone....
the bubblegum grew stale
my hero died in me of suffocation....
the president called when I was nineteen
he gave me an automatic weapon
and ordered me to kill for God and country
so I did and I did it well
I liked my job.....
but the boy I was before.....
had died from malnutrition.....
I buried him next to the rabbit.......

2007 © Ted Sheridan

Ted Sheridan

http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/i-strangled-the-life-out-of-everything/