The Squeezing of the Stone

dad waited 8 years
to tell him that 
cancer had infiltrated his body---
dad waited 8 years to tell him that
he had done anything about it---
dad had to stop working &
when he put money in the market
under close supervision of someone
whom he thought would help him out,
the whole ****ing thing
collapsed,
like the house of playing cards that it was,
leaving only the kings & queens as always
to walk off scot-free 
at a brisk pace
holding bags of money &
plane tickets---
dad’s money gone &
inability to work as he once did,
he began to watch all that he owned
leave his grasp
after working so hard for so many years
to do without credit &
to stay afloat the best that he could,
raising kids in the meantime &
saving that money for when times got tough,
for when he got old---
and so with less than 20 grand in the bank
he can’t shell out the money for the shots anymore,
not to mention the radiation---
the stone can’t be squeezed for blood to help
there’s just nothing left &
another great man will die because
america has no universal health care for its
citizens.
Copyright © | Year Posted 2012


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