sometimes when i feel down
i go pick out one of them
rodney jones maybe or stephen dunn
andrew hudgins
people who've been
through the fire you can tell it the first
time you read them yes these
are friends
men that will step out on the porch with you
before dawn
unafraid tasting the air
from off the river
and their dogs beside them
because that's what dogs and friends are for
to be there when you need them without
your asking
or even knowing what it is you want
living or dying what's the use
the way it is when only a poem will do
