Page 185

By Jack Joseph Smith

157 . a long faced goat. "Let my herns for-a moment shine from Apollo's i sure" Then he tock a chair, and placed it in the mid= dle-of the circle court, Glistening he looked, steadfast into the sun engaging time to be quiet, and as he began to soundless weep he wiped his cheeks fer to turn te the young runawaye , "This place is watched, Get. out’ of heres It would ‘be a mistake to be kind, Ge to work for a Japanese gardener," The boy's plump face turned preportionate;. then witheut pretest he 14ft, and Animal filled the: _Zlasses with the light red winesoe The geed evening was upon them, Jiven Joe play=: - ing-gutar,; and singing slow tunes, Porky and Bessy ‘ ower / meving his hands like Al Jelson acting "T Get Plenty cs be wood bis bawds - of Nothing." Doing it the way he liked, With his hi he th lips Animal and Jaugeline were smashed; crashed; . i. ek he Le but fer their eyes open from an inside laughter. aa ay Se he i Jee was strut'in, as if he were-doing a benefit’ EE oy , for thousandss And he was When he entertained, . his entire world of faces :and ‘times: passed’ through his wind and sensations, ag:if he were both aud= dence and ‘player’ to the flashbacks of the cinimes:

Original Scan

Page 185

AI Interpretation

GPT

Joe finally tells the boy to leave, then turns the evening into music and role-play, showing how entertainment and warning can come from the same wounded source.

The patio becomes a stage again, but now the performance has an ethical edge. Joe's guitar, mimicry, and song are not just self-display; they are the way he metabolizes memory, danger, and care without surrendering to sentimentality.

Claude

Joe tells the boy to leave and then turns the evening into music and role-play, showing how entertainment can be both refuge and deflection. The page handles dismissal with grace.