Read 'em and Weep

 

In my old age and limited physical ability,

I take a mental accounting of my history—

the Best and Worst of Me, all the hits and

misses of the past nearly 74 years.

Like most of us who had to swallow our

pride, I took on many a disheartening and

displeasing job in order to scrape by and

earn my way financially day after day.

Oh well, again like most of us here today,

I managed to make it to my uniquely per-

sonal retired time and place. Ah, but I had

an ace secretly and securely placed in my

brain which the boss man and naysayers

could never belittle or take away.

Given the many hours, days and years I

wasted working for pay, I was always biding

my time waiting, ever-searching for the next

beautiful or whimsical face to draw, sculpt,

paint or photograph.

Unlike all mindless jobs which over time have

been laid to waste, those lovely, powerful and

graceful images I managed to render in the

meantime will forever in my memory remain.

To all those former employers and the corporate

world of self-serving bottom line greed, I proudly

proclaim—four aces, Suckers, read ‘em and weep!

I’ll gather my chips and leave the table a winner

after all.

                          -30-

Chris Hanch 11-2-2020