Invisible Ray

[good4somethingbum]

Invisible RayMiss Johnson came up and asked, if I knew what Ray was thinkin’I said “he wasn’t much of a talker but sometimes by his lockerhe smelled like he’d been drinkin’never much noticed him, though we shared some classesI heard in bathrooms n hallways gangs n jocks were alwaysLaughing at his Clark Kent glassesBut he was like a shadow, lookin’ to hideawayEven our gym coach called him, Invisible Ray”Miss Johnson said “his dad made foreman out at Phelp’s DodgeSoon as he got promoted I heard he was votedtreasurer at the Elk’s Lodgebut sometimes on a Friday night, he thought it was manlyto drink some bourbon then start hurtin’his helpless fam’lyhis son’s bruises were blue, and his future was greyit’s my fault I never saw, Invisible Ray”O when someone thinks they won’t be missedThen they have no reason to existAnd a lot of his classmates, missed the service at St. Paul’sSome used their mama’s Visas on matinees n pizzasOthers played some paintballAnd that day haunts me more and more as I get olderRay lookin’ like he’s sleepin’ and poor Miss Johnson weepin’On my shoulderSometimes at night I fall to my knees and prayAnd hope the heaven I can’t see, saw Invisible Ray©2007 Robert George