They used to come by in their expensive suits
and everyone looked up to them;
feared them,
respected them.
They gave us kids money
for no reason at all
and handed out turkeys at Thanksgiving time.
They helped old ladies across the street
and didn't take shit from nobody.
Even the cops stopped coming around
because they got their envelopes
at the end of every month.
We used to call them wise guys
but I don't know what they called
themselves.
They took care of the neighbourhood
and no one complained.
One time, they came to collect
as I was buying candy
and they put the shopkeeper=s head through a plate glass window.
They also broke three ribs and cracked a few more
with a tire iron
in anger
because the shopkeeper had forced them to wrinkle
their suits.
When they were done,
they gave me money and a loaf of bread
and told me to go home.
These wise guys from the neighbourhood
were my superheroes
growing up.
They were not sold as action figures
and never appeared in comics
but they should have.
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