My brother Art and my friend John

My brother, John, and me smiling, listening
to strangers on a shore, sitting with love
and embarrassment in a bar trying to measure
our yesterdays and tomorrows to sweet music.

Art, a Navy vet, scheduled back to Viet Nam,
and my buddy John, and me, 4-year vets not going back
and all of us talking words, sipping booze, judging ourselves
and discussing our brother's options, Canada or Viet Nam.

We sat listening, talking, flipping cards and poker chips
without much meaning in a world turned topsy-turvy
and heard the strumming of the toughest strings of love
tied directly to all of our hopes for a very troubled world.