The Big Untidy Magazine

THE POET WALKS

The poet walks
In tired shoes
He has stars in his eyes
The stars give him a vision
He looks at beautiful skys,
No cold overcast day
Can dampen his spirit.

An old lady walks with carrier bags
Through city streets
Once a happy family, fragmented by poverty

A bobby stands on a nighttimes street
Looking for something suspicious
Bracing himself against the cold
He goes about his beat.

The smell of burgers and grilled onions
From an all night café
Tea in plastic cups
A bag of chips
A plastic seat to rest on
A little paradise
In the lonely city.

Beware the property developer
As he stalks these streets
Looking for land
On which to build his fortune

Men behind closed doors
In halls of power
Make rules that affect our lives.
We worry
We fret
You know it don’t seem right.

The poet walks in tired shoes
He will replace them sometime,
A poem unfolds in his mind.
He thinks it’s a poem that could change the world
Let him keep believing.

Frank Bangay