Accidental Wealth

I had been in Thailand
For more than two years
As a Peace Corps Volunteer,
And was nearing completion
Of my tour of duty.
Since I planned to attend
Graduate school
After completing my assignment,
I telexed my bank
Back in the United States
To find out how much
I had accumulated.
For some reason,
God only knows why,
The bank wired
All the money in my account
To my bank in Thailand.
I had been planning to leave
In a couple days
And stopped by
To clear out my account
And was startled to discover
It had sextupled overnight.
I lived in a particularly lawless area
And the thought of carrying
A large amount of cash
Freaked me out,
But I had no alternative.
I also was aware
That news of my sudden fortune
Would have a way of traveling
Through the local grapevine
With amazing velocity.
There was no telling
Who might find
That information of interest.
That last night in Yala
Was one of the most
Fearful nights of my life.
I listened all night long
To the sounds of the jungle
Thinking somebody
Was trying to break in.
I slipped out of town unannounced
The following day
And awoke on the train
Heading for Bangkok
The following night
Screaming in terror
From the night before.
Although I avoided being robbed,
I lost a considerable amount
Exchanging US dollars
Into Thai currency
And back again.
None-the-less,
I shudder to think
How much worse
It would have been
Had the accidental wealth
Arrived a day later.
I wouldn’t have known
Until I got back to Michigan
And by then
It would have been too late.
I would have lost everything!