juke-box serenade

 
drop another dream in the juke-box
and roll another one
like the one we just bogarted.
 
hey, little girl
in the sprayed-on jeans
& the Mamie Van Doren sweater,
smile your heart-breaker smile
& I will sing you rock&roll sonnets
I will name you moonwind of my heart –
 
beauty will splash like iridescent rain puddles
when you dance on the checkerboard floor.
the east-side punks & the uptown girls will
sway in the purlieu of your wagon-wheel stage.
 
let me hold you close when the lights
are dimmed on the poor side of town.
in the sad songs, the echoes of weeping guitars
remind us that tears are meant for only the lonely.
 
someday my burger & fries paradise will be
deserted, the records will no longer spin,
& my teen angel will dance off into a neon sunset…
 
but right now, in this pearl of confusion,
roll me another one.