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A Day in the City

 

The street mirrors my unease: a puddle of vomit.

 

A girl, homeless. Her white socks turned black,

Her shoes invisible, like her parents.

 

She rummages through a paper bag, seeking crumbs.

Orphan of the pavement. What\'s right

 

About a girl nibbling crumbs off soiled paper?

Or a stranger\'s hand-out? Crumbs

 

From a rich man’s banquet,

Swept away by white-gloved waiters,

 

Hustling for coin. What’s right

 

About children born to caress

The grime of the gutters? What\'s right

 

About a child’s socks, soiled by those gutters,

Embracing an invisible life?