The Ballad of Neighbour Joe

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R._N._Taber

Back in 2010, I posted the poem below ton my gay-interest blog, G-A-Y in the Subject Field. I have been asked by reader H R, who has only recently discovered that his eldest son is gay, to post it here today because “…it puts being gay in the context to which it belongs, that of a common humanity. Needless to say, the whole family love my son no less for his being gay, and I am proud of him for having the guts to say so…”

Well, thank you for that, H R, and I am sure most f not all readers will join me in wishing your son and the whole family love and peace.

It is interesting that H R thinks it takes guts to admit to being gay. Sadly, yes, it often does take guts…but it shouldn’t. We are living in the 21^st century, for goodness sake! Besides, our sexuality is our own business, no one else’s, so who are others to judge? I shouldn’t have to write a poetry blog especially for gay readers, but there are still a lot of straight poetry lovers out there who would have no interest in reading a gay blog… for poetry or whatever. The irony is that whenever I post a Gay Awareness poem on this general blog, not only gets well read but I also receive few (if any) emails to complain, in latter years at least; it was a very different story when I began publishing the blogs 10 years ago.

Mind you, I have to say, too, that there are a lot of gay readers out there who only read my gay blog because “…it addresses gay people as ordinary people, not freaks of nature.” – as one reader put it back in 2010.

It really shouldn’t matter whether people are gay or straight. We are all part of a common humanity, after all. Who is anyone, subscribing to whatever religion, native to whatever culture, friend, work colleague or next door neighbour to argue differently?

Well, aren’t we?

THE BALLAD OF NEIGHBOUR JOE 

I hate queers, neighbour Joe

once said to me, they’re perverts,

don’t you agree?

Not really, I had to say, especially

as I’m gay

He stared, glared, eyes wide

as saucers, lost for words although

his expression said it all;

at last, he managed to get a grip

and curled his lip

Queers deserve to be shot,

he snarled at me, and decent folks

would agree;

I took you for decent, I have to say

but you’re…gay?

I nodded, said conversationally,

so you’ll be getting a gun to shoot me?

He shook his head.

You’re a nice enough person, he said,

I don’t wish you dead

Tell me, he wanted to know,

what it’s all about, this being gay?

Sounds sick to me…

I was taught to loath and despise

(he whispered) ‘sodomy’ 

You have a bad attitude,

I felt inclined to tell him straight,

I’m a top man, me…

but it’s my job pays the mortgage,

not my sexuality

Why should what my partner

and I choose to get up to in bed

matter to you so?

He shook his head, rubbed his jaw,

finally admitted…

I’ll be damned if I know.

You’re right, said neighbour Joe,

it’s none of my business;

blame it on that old song and dance

called ignorance

We shook hands, went on our way,

good neighbours to this day

[From: On The Battlefields Of Love by R. N. Taber, Assembly Books, 2010]