After Jesse James Faked His Death by Melanie Browne

He couldn’t stay
in his beloved
Missourah,
and so he hitched
a ride to Texas
(Pronounced Tay-Hoss)
and was promptly hired
by EDS and rose up
the ranks of
that company and
dined with
Ross Perot
and various members
of the Bush Family.
He was wildly
entertaining
at company picnics!
(insert weapon onomatopoeia here)
and bought a house
on turtle creek.
he stuck a
“don’t mess with Texas”
sticker on his
white Pick-Up
(Texas don’t sell any other color)
and he got used to
beef barbeque,
but still Jesse missed
his Missourah
and his mother,
and he had sworn off
shooting fed’rals
and cut back
on the whiskey
and so ol jesse-
he settled for
football,
and tailgatin’,
bud light beer
and he married
a former cheerleader
and just like
that the wild
fell away
like all
good things

Melanie Browne is a poet and fiction writer living in Texas. She has poetry at Madswirl, Bad Acid Poetry, In Between Hangovers and the now defunct Dead Snakes. She spends too much time looking at ghost photos on EBay, reading Wikipedia articles on old west Outlaws, and cataloging her fears for future generations.