A Day In Court

On Jury Duty
I sit, drink coffee, and read
-they never pick me.

Copyright 2008

Justice Served?

Sometime, if you ever want another kind of day off, spend it at the county courthouse. It could be very educational.

Eviction
by Edward S. Gault

The lawyer was silhouetted against the light
From the window behind the judge.
I remember him hoisting his file cabinet size briefcase
Upon the table in front of him,
A burly hand gripping the handle-
It was a big hand.
"I represent landlords in their claims
against tenants" he said.
I could not see his face.
Just the hand and that big briefcase.
A woman stood at the bar-
A little girl in tow, her hair held back
With a heart barrette.
She explained that she had lost her job,
But that she was doing everything
She could to pay the rent.
She said that she even sold her car
To pay the landlord what she owed him.
She said this a number of times at the trial.
But she didn't have cabinet size briefcase.
She had small delicate hands
And a soft voice.
Soft voices weren't being heard
In court that day.

Copyright 2008

Ever Have One Of Those Nights?

Tirades
by Edward S. Gault

Every night was a trial
When the people upstairs got
Ticked off at each other-
Or their in-laws
Or their exes'
Or their exes' lawyers
Or the landlord
(I was actually tempted to go up
And join in on that one).
It scarcely mattered what the issue was-
The who or the what.
When they went into one of their tirades
Their hollering alone shook the foundations of the building-
Loosening the bricks
(even the ones just recently put in
with fresh cement),
Peeling the wallpaper,
And shattering the windows.
Then there were the things they threw-
I don't believe it was limited
To just the dishes.
There were thuds on the floor
That I was sure were going to bring down the ceiling.
Oh, and on those hot Summer nights (I mean really hot, wicked humid).......
I always thought
They might consider
recording these sessions
In a studio
On a C.D.
That way they wouldn't need to
Have the actual fight
Just enjoy it on C.D.
(With head phones).

Copyright 2007