Miroslav Ladan

This is how it was
I’ve been trying to buy a house for many years
And something would always happen
Last minute
Like that time when I put money down
On an A-Frame in Bethel, Maine
But that day quadruple murder occurred in
Quiet town of Bethel
Or to be precise in Newry
Exactly where my property was located
And for the first time in more than 200 years
Something like this occurred in
Quiet town of Bethel.

This was not my first attempt to buy
Once I made an offer on a home in Belmont, MA
Never heard back from the owner
Decided not to sell or what I don’t know
And I didn’t check crime statistics in
Belmont, Cambridge, or Boston that day
I am sure there were murders, but nobody
Thought they happened because of the house
I was buying
At that time Bethel murders hadn’t happened
And I looked completely innocent.

To Macy’s I am going today
Where I will have to pay
With money, plain old US dollars
While I bring with me only my melancholy
And times I felt good without a reason
Like three years ago
When it started snowing in my town
A blizzard completely overlooked by weatherman
I will hold this for unexpected bargains
But if they ask for money at Macy’s
My shopping will be yet another failure
Still, my companion laughs
She looks at me confidently as if we will be together
A thousand years from now