THIRTY YEARS AGO

THIRTY YEARS AGO

One early morning, there came a knocking at her door,
when she opened it stood a man, that she had loved, thirty years before,
he took her by the hand and led her down the street,
he turned into to a park where they first did meet,
they walked a ways and sat down on a bench,
the story that he told her, made her poor heart wrench,
it seems that he had disappeared, thirty years before,
the way that he had left her, made her heart so sore,
not a soul in town had the answer, though many she did ask,
now it is thirty years later and he is here at last,
he told her the reason that he left, why he had to go away,
he placed his hands across his chest, and this is what he had to say,
I didn't want to leave you, but I had no choice,
he began his story, with a cracking in his voice,
he was on his way to see her, when something hit his head,
he fell upon the sidewalk and bled and bled and bled,
they took him to the hospital where they saved his life,
but he knew not who he was, it filled him full of strife,
he tried to find out who he was, his memory was so dim,
then up walked a man that knew him, he said, hi there Jim,
I been waiting here for you, for a day or so,
so get your things together because we have to go,
just where are we going, is what I asked the man,
we are going to the jailhouse, your going to the can,
just what have I done,that I should go to jail,
he said you killed a child, may you rot in hell,
my woeful pleas of innocence, fell upon deaf ears,
I could not defend myself and they gave me thirty years,
I didn't know who I was, or why I was sent there,
but someone told me , I was lucky I didn't get the chair,
I could remember nothing about that fateful day,
so for thirty years while doing my time, all I did was pray,
then one day a man came up, and said his name was Joe,
that I was doing time for a crime he had done thirty years ago
no one was the wiser, I couldn't defend my self,
so for thirty years I was there, just waiting on the shelf,
he asked to see the warden, because I was innocent,
the warden heard his story, then his head was bent,
they released me just a day ago, took me to my home town,
when I saw my surroundings my memory came around,
and now I stand before you, sick and old and gray,
to let you know just why I left, thirty years ago today,
her heart was beating wildly, from the story that she'd just heard,
just to put it mildly,she believed him, every word.

written by Harry Bryant
2/21/04 6:49:52 PM ©
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