My Brother’s Smile

Michael Jackson news is everywhere
so much distortion in an effort to conform
to what the media or he imagined the public wanted.

In the early years when his skin was brown,
his ‘fro cropped close, and his nose still broad
his dreamy eyes captured the camera
but when he smiled those perfect teeth
a half cocked grin, made you think,
he alone knew the joke …

so much like my brother’s smile.

While my brother, Jess was in school
he got in trouble, my parents were called,
he insisted he was innocent
but the nuns responded, “It’s that smirk,
we know he tried to get away with something.
He must understand it's not a joke.”

Jess was smart but his skin was dark
he was easy to overlook except when there was someone
to blame then he got it twice as often.

How seriously can you take a person with a rakish grin
pressed against your sense of what is right and wrong
and if they’re talented - even more suspicious
an unsolvable puzzle to be admired, feared and deconstructed.