Gerard Sarnat is the author of Homeless Chronicles, Disputes, 17s, and Melting the Ice King. He has been published in Gargoyle, Margie, OCHO, New Delta Review, and numerous other publications. Gerard is the recipient of the First Place Award and The Dorfman Prize. Gerard’s Kaddish for the Country was distributed nationwide in the US as a pamphlet on January 20th, 2017. In addition to his literary accolades, Gerard has worked as a professor at Stanford and as a healthcare CEO for several companies (and has worked in clinics for the marginalized as well as in jails).
This poem takes its title from the novel of the same name by Richard Fariña.
Been Down So Long It Looks Like Up To Me
Never thought a jot about folks in airport terminals
Who sat steely in wheelchairs while we kibitzing masses
Waited and waited for them to board first
Never began to notice fellow partygoers
Who remained trapped on divans
While the rest of us upright talking souls circulated
Never much slowed down my swagger-strut-sprint
In jeans plus tennies, like a teen just yesterday
Until I was an infirmed elder needing empathy
Today I am awed by all those who can stand no less walk
More of Gerard’s work is accessible via GerardSarnat.com.