Once
in the 80s
we used to walk past straight couples
holding hands & kissing on the street
& I would be raging inside
that we weren’t allowed to do the same
we could do it now I guess
in the big cities at least
without fear of being called faggots
or beaten to death with baseball bats
if we were still together
39 thoughts on "Once"
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Love the minimalist sensibilities. No caps or punctuation. The last line — whoa! I favorite, Kevin!
Typo alert! I meant to say “my” favorite. seriously love the poem.
I knew what you meant, darlin. Thanks for being my friend.
I don’t tend to open trigger warning poems. I’m glad I did.
So much here. So, so very much.
Thanks Coleman. When I added the trigger warning on Sunday’s poem it was by mistake. This time it was intentional.
Wonderful ending! Didn’t see it coming. Beautiful
Thanks Mike.
This one hit hard, and yet it’s written so softy. Beautiful.
Thanks, H.A.!
As has been said, you do so much with so little in this poem. Well done.
Thanks Lee!
💓
Fantastic. Thank you for sharing.
I’m so grateful I read the other comments and decided to open your poem.
Much love to you.
Thanks Tabitha! You are very kind.
That feeling of being left out is strong, Kevin. Last line lands.
Thanks Bill. Left out, yes, and maybe more than that: excluded. Condemned.
You’re right, that was a soft-pedal on my part,
Not at all, Bill. I know you understood the poem.
Powerfully vulnerable, thank you.
Thanks Austen.
A simple Poem about feeling left out …so sad.
Thanks Linda.
This is just stunning! It begins with one kind of pain and then lands me in a totally different ache. Beautiful.
Thanks Lisa. I’m glad you appreciated the ending. I’ve wondered at times whether more gay couples would have stood the test of time if we hadn’t had so many external forces working against us.
Dynamite ending
Thanks Pat.
This poem is so concise and seemingly simple, but it’s a gut punch and haunting–especially that last line.
The “I guess” and “at least” in the first 2 lines of the second stanza speak volumes.
Thanks Karen. I’m glad you noticed those small details, which I did intend as significant. You’re a great reader.
Now just the common-place grief of love. You could hold hands if there were hands to hold. Great poem, the combination of political and personal.
Thanks Joe. Appreciate your kindness and empathy. Excellent qualities in a landlord. 😉
Last line is most compelling.
Thanks Wayne.
You do so much in so few lines, Kevin. A history, both cultural and personal, evoking an ache, amplified by that 102,000 Pascal last line. Very powerful.
Thanks, Bud! Can you tell me more about your reference to Pascal? I’m not sure I understand it.
This poem does what the best poetry should—makes the personal political with a heft and collective meaning.
Thanks, Shaun! I don’t write very often about politics per se, but in this case I suppose I did. More about culture I think, but that’s just semantics.
Damn, you masterfully shift from a collective observation of injustice to a deeply personal heartbreak. GREAT WRITE!
Thanks Jeremy!
This brought tears to my eyes. The anguish portrayed in such few lines.
Sending a written hug.
Hug received, Mary. Many thanks.