zoo keeper's helper

as a teenager
you remember
searching the want ads
for a job.
jobs were hard to come
by when your hair
was down around your
shoulders. you
refused out of principle
not to cut your
treasured locks and
give in to what the man
wanted. at eighteen
you were all about
principles and rebellion,
but you were hungry
too. each
morning you would
flip through
the classifieds,
starting with the a's
and working towards
z. rarely was there
a job that began with
z. zoo keeper's
helper, was one you
answered though.
you almost
quit the second
you were handed
a broom and a shovel
and pointed
in the direction of
the elephant cage,
but you hung in there
for a summer. looking
back on it. it was
one of your best
and most memorable jobs.