Jaron

This is the story of old Jimmy Bones,
A good man who had no home.
He would sit there and drink, or smoke a cheap cigar,
While he was drunk off his ass all alone.

A long time ago, he had a wife and a kid
(a daughter his wife had named "Sally")
Who he loved and he cherished but it was never enough,
So his wife left him drunk in an alley.

When he woke, the next morning, he sat there for days,
Pouring red label into a mug,
Remembering life before his was over.
He said "fuck it," and started to chug.

Drunk off his ass, then, he decided to walk,
Stumbling whatever place felt right.
Hitting alleys and bars, then the park and park benches,
He laid down and slept for the night.

By that time it was winter in that part of the world
And the snow crusted over his old coat
(That he got as a gift on the night of his wedding)
And snow dusted him, frosting over his throat.

Sitting there coughing for an hour (maybe two)
He curled up, puking up on the sidewalk
With his eyes frozen over, at least in part,
And his heart the same. He started to talk.

"Go fuck yourself, god, and have a Merry Christmas.
I know we haven't talked for years, maybe longer,
But you know, for this holiday, I've just got one wish.
I just want to see my daughter."

"You can tell my wife to go fuck herself sideways,
But my daughter? She doesn't deserve this bullshit.
She needs a daddy, like I am, to give her presents and all that,
So come on, what do you think about it?"

Not expecting an answer, Jimmy rolls right back over,
Wiping the vomit from off of his face,
But a voice calls across to him, tender and shrill.
He snaps right back up. The voice says...

"Daddy! Daddy! Where are you?" and Jimmy replies,
"Baby girl? Baby doll? Where are YOU?"
But as he yells, his voice catches and he coughs up again,
His mouth spewing vomit onto his shoes.

His eyes rise back up, and now he thinks he sees her,
But his shouts are like whispers in the air.
But still, she can see him and with a smile, she's running.
She lands in his arms, and he holds her there.

Sitting there, for Christmas, Jimmy Bones starts to smile
Beneath eyes that're still frozen shut.
The cold winter chill seeps the heat from his shivering body.
The burn of booze cools in his gut.

A gentle white snowflake twirls down from the heavens,
Swirling gently to land on his sad smiling lips
And to keep him company with his hallucinations.
As his breath stops and the bottle tumbles from his grip.