Bad Boy
George Briggs
So bad at being a boy.
Couldn’t huck a rock
through the tire or over the fence
couldn’t belch on command
didn’t think that the Borat voice
was very funny, actually.
Always volunteering for stuff
that the girls usually did.
Always this silence
hanging off me like the bulky t-shirt
I used to swim in when I was 13.
Not great at knots. Not great
at killing things. Not great at not caring
or not crying. Shying
away from the other boys
when they used to clot
together in rocky spots
far from girls or teachers
on the playground
and later the highschool hallway
and later still the sports bar.
Hardened eyes and fists
that always wanted to know
What kind of boy was I anyway?
George Briggs
So bad at being a boy.
Couldn’t huck a rock
through the tire or over the fence
couldn’t belch on command
didn’t think that the Borat voice
was very funny, actually.
Always volunteering for stuff
that the girls usually did.
Always this silence
hanging off me like the bulky t-shirt
I used to swim in when I was 13.
Not great at knots. Not great
at killing things. Not great at not caring
or not crying. Shying
away from the other boys
when they used to clot
together in rocky spots
far from girls or teachers
on the playground
and later the highschool hallway
and later still the sports bar.
Hardened eyes and fists
that always wanted to know
What kind of boy was I anyway?