Dan the Man spoke his mind and didn’t care who knew it
But he did it with a grin
And toes gnarled from so many encounters with a soccer ball
A few strands of hair and a hawkish nose as if rebuking
His quick smile and his open heart
Dan probing life for its secrets, Dan smiling at a joke of his own making
Snapping photos and observations
The details mattered to Soccer Dan on the day on Commerce Street
That a dirt-encrusted car tire rose to him in the middle of the road
No longer soccer Dan, he became Litter Dan
Picking fistful after fistful of the refuse
Of Yorktown his adoptive hometown
All the while
His piercing eyes observant of Yorktown’s comings
And detailing its shortcomings
Dan the Coffee Man who guzzled Joe with his friends at Uncle G’s
Who told stories of hearing the bombers overhead in London of 45
Who loved mussels in cream sauce
Whose photo of the red bridge crossing the Croton reservoir
Graces the cover of the parks & rec semi-annual guide forever
Dan Strauss put himself on the garbage detail
Because that was what needed doing
Always a man fixated on the task ahead.
His tasks are all accomplished now, and he can rest.
In peace.
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