Old Fiddle Man

by Michael Lee Johnson / November 24th, 2024


Old daddy man
playing fiddle man
in a family youth band.
He was the star.
Crowds paid & rushed
through that door, dancing
clapping to hear a few slim notes
for just transitory seconds
a few brief notes only
realizing the ephemeral
rhythm man before he died.
Dance, dance, dance,
fiddle man past midnight
tonight, he lost his bow.
83 years old, arthritic fingers
World War 2 man
scally cap, cheese cutter cap—
dipped down cap.
83 years old fiddle man.
Thornwood Restaurant & Lounge.

Michael Lee Johnson, from the Chicago area, is an internationally published poet in 46 countries or republics; several published poetry books have been nominated for 7 Pushcart and 7 Best of the Net nominations. Read other articles by Michael Lee, or visit Michael Lee's website.

This article was posted on Sunday, November 24th, 2024 at 8:00am and is filed under Poetry.