Text for the Plaque at the Corner of Landon and Naldo

For Matthew Hall

Part 1

Years later he was painting

street scenes of Jamestown

in encaustic

and the same girl

over and over again

trying to get her right.

Spring probably brought him

the best light. I don't know

maybe in Upstate the season

is so short and requires

so much patience

the waiting got to him.

He showed there, though,

and was celebrated.

His hometown finally

deserving him. He was

as settled as he got,

had a young son and a studio.

I doubt he thought back

much on the trouble

or the billboard

that brought him to Florida.

Part 2

The two of us signed the lease

and then, all our other friends

moved in. Joe, Berry, Chris

Keith Lee and Charley. If you

were 21, in San Marco, and lost,

either we found you

or you found us. At first,

we had neighbors. We stole

their newspapers and did

other unspeakable things.

They were fine people

and we missed them

when they left, one by one.

They probably wanted to sleep,

what concern was that of ours?

The apartment continued

to fill with guitars,

empty beer cans and smoke.

Matty showed me

the Bob Dylan G

and taught me enough

to obsess me for years.

If you've ever heard me sing

you have him to thank

or to blame. All the same,

you can't make being

21 a career.

You're always hung-over

and your checks never clear.

One October, one Tuesday

we all disappeared.

February 21, 2016