ANNIVERSARIES

watched an old movie today

if almost thirty years

into the past, into the future

can be called that

from 1973

the year I started writing poetry

about Serpico

an undercover cop

almost criminal

how Al Pacino in the star role

looked more criminal

than some criminals

I’ve recently seen on TV

long hair, beard, grubby clothes

yet refusing to take bribes

dared to climb the blue wall of silence

cleaner than the clean cut detectives

trying to bring him down

I too was undercover back then

not polished enough to come out

secretly filling pages

in celebration and angst

of pretty girls, state of the world

especially the middle east

in one scene

Serpico runs across a tenement roof

about to make a bust

and in the distance

the unforgettable shape

of twin towers brand new

amid the Manhattan skyline

me wondering how strange

that same scene would look

if filmed today

brought back to the present

reminder of how much

has and hasn’t changed

Serpico gets shot in the face

single handedly

trying to break down a pusher’s door

the two crooked cops accompanying him

purposely holding back

lucky for the hero

only a small caliber

he survived to testify

help clean up the force

as for my poetry

I’ve long since blown my cover

and aside from a few variations

in style and content

girls are as pretty

middle east sadly still the middle east

© 2002 Chris Sorrenti