Lawrence Hall
Dispatches for the Colonial Office
He was a Cute Little Boy
And on occasion he was told no
“One…”
Sometimes he was yelled no
“Two…!”
Sometimes he was yelled no again
“Twooooo…!”
And again
“Twooooooooo…this time I mean it!”
Sometimes he was screamed no
“Twwwwwwwwwoooo! DON’T MAKE ME GO TO THREE!”
And again
“Threeeeeeeeeeee! I SAID THREE! YOU KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS!”
But then
“Okay, one…”
And then
“Two, if you’ll tell your sister you’re sorry…”
And then
“OKAY, MISTER, THREE! AND I MEAN IT THIS TIME!”
And then
(“Honey, don’t you think you’re being a little rough? Now you’ve made him cry.”)
And then years later the state superior court told him no
And they didn’t yell.
And they didn’t say “one”
And they didn’t say “two”
And they didn’t say “three”