Innocent Times - Poem

When you are growing up and measuring yourself against the world 

there are certain expectations placed upon you

Some are imposed by people with good intentions 

while others you decide to burden yourself with

I was mediocre in sports, my crowning athletic achievement 

in high school, earning a letter in bowling

And I can say with confidence, that being a stutterer, with braces and sporting a crew cut and glasses 

Was not a clear path forward to passing through the gateway to the higher echelons 

of my hometown teenage social structure

I loved music, but my singing voice could rouse the dead from their slumbers 

No way I could croon and swoon myself into the heart 

of the girl I sat next to in Spanish class my senior year

I enjoyed writing, but that wasn’t exactly viewed as the most masculine of pursuits

though I was certain that my words could elevate my stature in the eyes of girls  

accustomed to having to endure the banal utterings of slow witted jocks

So how to make myself visible, notable, maybe even admirable?

What extraordinary achievement could I accomplish that would garner everyone’s attention?

And then it came to me, a bold notion, elegant in its simplicity

I would find a way for Eric Clapton to use my words in a song

Mr. Slowhand himself would provide the melody, something memorable

that would be perfectly suited to the inspired lyrics that I would gift to him

The song would be on his next album

It would be part of every set on his next tour

There would be my name on the album jacket, words by that brilliant lyricist, me

It would be the realization of a dream, my destiny fulfilled

Hey Clapton, it’s been over 50 years since I sent you those lyrics

I’m waiting!!