Tribute to a Coffee Friend

Old John at McDonalds
By Larry Linville

Each morning he cranked up that old black car
And drove to McDonalds where he was a star.
With coffee and paper in hand
He tried to keep everything under his command.
That old northeast chair was his throne
and he tried to maintain a regal tone.
He thought he was king, when he started to hum
Some song that everyone thought was so dumb.

He thought his job was to reply
to things said by every guy.
That smirk on his face was hard to replace
but the group would continually try
to chip away at this guy.
They’d say things absurd
But he had the last word
and that word was usually dry.

He seemed like such an irreverent cuss
But I learned he was just one of us.
He tried to prove he was sweet
When he passed out candy to eat
We weren’t sure where he got it
But he probably hadn’t bought it
And he passed it to all as a treat.


His requests to Saint Peter were few
A stained coffee cup and a paper will do.
Give him an old chair
And some friends to sit there
And John will be happy – wouldn’t you?