the right one doesn’t exist
i was in there
for some crime
you cannot even imagine, but
what they could actually hang on me
was less than nothing.
they knew it was more
but i wasn’t holding, and
i wouldn’t give them
the sweat off my sack, so
it was decided;
detention,
my term was to be served out
in those shallow, horrid walls.
14 days
Janitorial duty
after school
until the task was completed.
she was an old horse
the school janitor. i had half-believed
that she was the one
who’d turned me in.
we had a common room, back then
sort of a student lounge
with stereo-cassette player
and a locking door.
every night after
half-a-dozen waste baskets
i’d steal the coffee machine
out of the teacher’s lounge
make a pot
and sip
and listen to the tunes
i brought in
until my cut-off time;
7;30 p.m.
about the 5th night in
she used the key
opened the door
and caught me
in full-recline.
i expected the knife.
she reached over, turned
the volume down
told me to keep it quiet.
she dropped the can
of condensed milk
on the lino counter
and closed the door
behind her.
that detention was very effective.
i learned two very valuable lessons.
my enemy
was not on staff, and
my most negative behavior
would always meet
with positive
reward.