Family Remembers Poem by David Welch

I-Robby

Robby had been married going on eight years,
when his Marie demanded a divorce,
she had been planning, lawyering up,
and instantly dragged it into the court.

Poor Robby had not seen it coming,
he thought things had been going quite well,
he could barely deal with loosing his love,
much less navigating Family Court hell.

Worst still Marie had cleaned out their accounts,
so he had to borrow from his parents,
just to afford a junior lawyer,
in truth, Robby was unable to bear it.

Being separated from his two boys,
being along with no partner if life…
What could he have done to ever have earned
the enmity of his once loving wife?

The proceedings, they just kept dragging on,
and Robby faced insurmountable bills,
then one day Marie claimed that he'd hit her,
that his temper was always set to kill? !

Robby's family gawked in disbelief,
their boy never even been in a fight,
they all tried to say the Marie had lied,
but she played the judge's sympathies right.

Men don't fare well in Family Courts,
in the end Rob lost near sixty percent,
add the that alimony, child support,
and no custody of his two children.

The young men felt his world crashing on down,
but the worst of it was yet to come,
Marie's claims made their way up to his boss,
and within weeks, Rob's position was gone.

When he told the judge he was out of work,
and his payments would have to be changed,
she said, "I'll have to investigate this,
many dead-beats go to lengths to not pay."

That dragged on for several long months,
and Robby was already long broke,
one morning a cop waited on his front door,
and with a sneer, glared at Robby and spoke:

"We have got a complaint that you have not
paid up on this month's child support.
A warrant has been issued for your arrest,
I really hate dealing with your sort! "

He tried to explain his words with the judge,
but the officer really didn't care,
dragged into court, Rob found the same judge,
glowering down at him from her chair.

"Your wife needs those payments to survive,
nut you seem to think this is a joke,
so you're going to spend a week in jail,
and learn an important lesson, I hope."

As to the judge's biased nature,
Robby no longer had any doubts,
and none there knew that when he went away,
never more would he ever come out…

II-Marie

It was two full days after this charade
when Marie was told the grim news,
her ex-husband had been shanked in prison,
killed by two illegal alien youths.

When she went down to the funeral,
she was greeted by the dirtiest glares,
except from Robby's sister, Jana,
a quiet your woman of grace and care.

They talked long after the service had
come to its sad and dignified end,
Jana said, "I know you didn't plan for this,
but I'm hoping that we can remain friends."

Marie was taken aback by this,
it came out of nowhere, a surprise,
but she saw a deep sincerity
in the young woman's tired, blue eyes.

They did all the things the girlfriends do,
went to brunch, shopped too much, borrowed clothes,
Marie would let Aunt Jana take
the boys out for several hours or so.

Six months later on a Saturday night,
the two drank 'till their teeth learned to swim,
they took a cab back to Marie's house,
and with a clamor, stumbled their way in.

Both of them collapsed on the big soda,
Marie said, "Haven't danced like that in years.
Robby never really knew how to dance,
he'd just hang back and nurse a light beer."

Marie had had too many drinks that night,
said, "He was always acting that way.
Had no ambition to movie up in the world,
nor to even try to bring home more pay.

"I wish I'd gotten through to that man,
and it is so sad that I never did,
but I deserve a comfortable life,
and, of course, must think of my kids."

Jana mumbled drunkenly, "I understand, "
then quickly passed out to a boozy sleep.
Marie would soon fall asleep next to her,
for she felt too drunk to trust to her feet.

Three months later she awoke to a noise,
wood splintering as her front door crashed.
She ran down to hear a police sergeant
say, "We've a warrant boys, go find her stash! "

She stammered, unable to make sense of it,
when the cops found hidden bags of cocaine,
the sergeant slapped cuffs onto her wrists,
while she cried, "This must be a mistake! "

III-Jana

Four months following Marie's conviction,
Jana walked calmly into the prison,
there to see her former sister-in-law,
doing twenty years for sale and possession.

She had a purpose she needed to see through,
Jana had to see Marie and tell her,
so she lied and said that they were engaged,
so they could get the conjugal trailer.

When they brought Marie in, clad in orange,
her eyes lit up at the sight of her friend,
she cried, "Jana, I don't belong in here!
I've done nothing, and yet I'm in the penn! "

"I've no idea where those drugs came from, "
she declared as she slumped in the chair.
Said Jana, "There's no mystery in that.
It was I who put the cocaine there."

Marie nearly choked, too stunned to speak,
barely managing to croak out a "Why? "
Jana said, "Well, it's really quite simple,
you are the true reason that my brother died.

"Did you think I ever would forget
what you did to him in that court room?
How you lied and called him an abuser,
when you knew damn straight that it wasn't true!

"Robby didn't have a violent bone,
everyone knew that you wore the pants,
you could have just divorced him and gone,
there was no reason to destroy the man!

"And then you go and explain that you left
because Robby didn't make enough cash? !
For richer or poorer…a joke to you,
you really should not have told me that.

"Your children will be raised by my parents,
who set a far better example than you.
Couldn't let you go guide their upbringing,
they'd probably turn out evil too!

"You took my brother away from us all,
and you left my poor parents deep in tears,
for that I sentence you to two decades
of living all of your waking moments in fear.

"And don't think about repeating all this,
in this trailer they cannot listen in.
They'll believe it the ravings of a scumbag,
desperate to escape her great sins—"

At this post Marie leapt for Jana's throat,
but Jana swiftly leapt up and jumped back,
she shouted loudly, "Guards'! She's gone crazy! "
They rushed on in and broke up the attack.

While they subdued Marie there on the floor,
Jana quickly exited the whole scene,
and allowed herself a vengeful smile
at the sound of Marie's mad, futile screams.