The town of fathers

They sit in a circle drinking beers
sharing wartime stories
love and lust stories
these men had lived quite fulfilling lives
they all hailed from the same town
grew up together
now it seems like once again they will grow old together

the twist is that they were all once married with kids
during different point in their lives they all seemed to divorce,
and move back to the town of their childhood
or their exes moved away from the town
now all you can see in the town are different circles
all elderly men
drinking away their sorrows
wondering what their kids now look like

are they tall are they short?
do they excel in athletics?
are they sleek with the girls or guys?
are they intelligent ?
what is their favourite flavour of ice cream?
will I ever see them again?

oh back to the conversation at hand
they can't be seen in any state of regret
in any state of reflection
they were raised as alpha males
they had to keep up appearances
"oh yes I remember when I chased a bear on foot ....."
this was his little insert
he had grown tired of this ritual
but this beat the sound of silence he heard when he went home
he'd rather drink after work
it made sleep come quicker
it saved him from the interrogations of his conscience.

when you walk this town
all you see is men
the women have all left
the town is too much for them
a spectacle like this never before has been seen,
a town of fathers with no wives and no children