Every year at this time I cannot get this out of my mind...
It seems like a
life time ago that you and I took a
Handicapping
course at
Central
Washington University with
field trips to
Yakima Meadows, we
learned how to
read a racing form,
whether or not to
bet on bloodlines,
the jockey or the
trainer
Okay, I admit,
now, that sometimes I broke rank
and bet purely on
a clever name, English majors
are so
irresistibly drawn to words…
Here I am
listening to the “Run for the Roses”
lead in
commentary with rambling
thoughts of how
it once was-the
good times-for us
I look at my TV
and see a muddy track
You and I know
that some horses
actually run
better on
a muddy track…I
guess
I wasn’t one of
them!
Those were crazy
fun times
We drug our
toddler along and I bet
at the window,
with her on my hip
while you slurped
suds with your buds
and inhaled those
horse smells
all cowboys seem
to savor…
The race will be
a quick two minutes
But the show is
three hours long
on a lazy
Saturday afternoon
Suddenly, I am
wondering if
you’re hanging
out with other inmates
in the Yuma
County Jail
enjoying the very
same program
I imagine that
you’re sharing
your knowledge of
horses
and laughing
about the handicapping class
we took together so many years ago
For a moment you
may even mist up-
You never
believed for an instant that
I would
eventually leave,
you were shocked
when
I finally did
You must’ve felt
so betrayed
You thought you
knew me
You predicted me
as a Favorite
You didn’t really
know me at all
You were my Long Shot-
when the race was
run
and I lost my
entire bank
the deal was done
You serving time
for outstanding warrants-DUIs
finally my bet is
right: I made a decision
to bail, nearly
30 years ago
Here I am-and
there you are,
watching
The Kentucky
Derby, televised
in different
states
I called it, oh
so long ago
Sadly, sometimes
there is no
gratification in
being on the money!
Ironically, Super Saver won,
Devil May Care did not even
Place or show!
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