We never met
Why would we?
Our circles so different
He, a top CEO
Private jet, summer home
Sponsor of countless worthy causes
Perfect on paper
I, the starving artist
Commissioned to paint his portrait
His posthumous portrait
Larger than life
A simple job
Just immortalize the guy
Make him perfect on canvas
Reference photos?
Only one
A slick professional shot
Posed and poised
Dark blue suit
Conservative tie
A man dwarfed by status
Massive leather chair
Overly-polished cherry desk
The camera can steal your soul
But was there one to steal?
I begged and pleaded for
Snapshots, for candids
What came?
Unusable enlargements
Himself golfing in
Hat and dark glasses
A stranger still
Deadline looming
I took up the brush
No choice now
What color were his eyes - green?
Or were those mine?
Two long unproductive days
Then a delivery
50 snapshots from his widow
The story of a happy life
Color and black and white
In dated album pages
He appeared through plastic pockets
Lidless eyes hid beneath smiling cheeks
And there was a space between his front teeth
How perfectly human
He caught a fish "this big"
Played polo with the Mrs.
Walked three daughters down the aisle
Cheered his alma mater to victory
Applauded the symphony
He lived
He loved
He died
And I cried
For this perfect stranger
