TO TOMMY

They put you away, my darling, Tommy.
My friend, my foe, my cousin, and confidant.
What did they know of what you meant to me
and my young sanity? I visited you at Napa,
once. I found the locks there no stronger
than those on my rage at the injustice of it.
The long corridors, not unlike the emptiness
 in my heart, haunted me for weeks afterwards.

They put you away, my darling Tommy.
Because you could not be readily controlled.
I made a vow to hide my soul, lest they discover
no such control with me. How deeply I mourned
 your loss, I cannot explain. How long I suffered
 nightmares of that infernal place near the wine
fields I am unable to remember. The insanity
there lurked just outside my innermost self.

They put you away, my darling Tommy.
Before you had a chance to grow or blossom.
You became a six foot six bonzai in the midst
of a petrified society. They fear you most.
You, with the untamed blaze of arson in your
 angry eyes. We share the same roots, you
an I. You could never have frightened me.
I am the one who knew and shared your pain.