{"id":8907,"date":"2024-05-22T07:00:50","date_gmt":"2024-05-22T14:00:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nestuccaspitpress.com\/blog\/?p=8907"},"modified":"2024-05-22T07:00:50","modified_gmt":"2024-05-22T14:00:50","slug":"three-poems-about-the-homeless","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nestuccaspitpress.com\/blog\/three-poems-about-the-homeless\/","title":{"rendered":"Three Poems About the Homeless"},"content":{"rendered":"<!-- wp:themify-builder\/canvas \/-->\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A Dark Figure<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A dark figure<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">stands at the entrance of a lighted church.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Elmer the husky and I<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">walk the neighborhood at 5:30 AM.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">No moon or stars seen in the sky.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I see the figure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I know it&#8217;s a homeless man<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">because I see the homeless<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">almost every morning on our walks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Think about that regularity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It still astonishes me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We approach him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I lead Elmer off the sidewalk<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">to give us some distance<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">to go around.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I don&#8217;t like feeling that way,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">but it happens sometimes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He&#8217;s smoking a cigarette.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He&#8217;s tall, young, bearded, contorted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He&#8217;s looking up at the sky,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">gesticulating,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">pointing,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">raging,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">but utterly silent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If there had been stars,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">just one,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">or the moon,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">even a sliver,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I might understand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">There is nothing<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">but black.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Usually, I say <em>good morning<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">to the homeless.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Not this morning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Bark Chip Artist<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It&#8217;s 5:30 in the morning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A purple and orange outline<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">of Mt. Hood forms in the eastern sky.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A planet&#8217;s up there, too,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">but I can&#8217;t name it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I learned nothing useful<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">in junior high science.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Worm dissections and<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">petri dish molds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Never one lesson<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">about watersheds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I walk Elmer the maniacal husky through the park.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Time for another encounter<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">with the homeless.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Perhaps walk into<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">an arresting image<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">to inspire a poem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We pass a young homeless<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">man smoking a cigarette<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">and fiddling on his phone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I say <em>good morning<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He doesn&#8217;t look up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">No poem there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Fifty yards later,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">a homeless man approaches.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He walks crooked and shuffling.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We meet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I say <em>good morning<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He grunts something<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">in return<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I don&#8217;t catch it<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">but I think it<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">sounded cordial.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Nothing like a cordial grunt<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">for a greeting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Possible poem there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We cross the bridge<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">where below the old beaver lurks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A can of Coors<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">rests on a rail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I see a homeless man<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">carrying a bag of cans and bottles<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">across the street.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I call out to him about the can.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He says, <em>thank you<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">and crosses the street.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">No poem there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But possible greeting card.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Geese honk overhead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Freight trains lurch and decouple.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Elmer and I keep moving.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We hit the bark chip path,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">lit up by lampposts,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">and pass the<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">split oak<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">and fallen cedar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Down the path<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I see a homeless man<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">meander.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He stops and<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">scratches out something<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">in the bark chips<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">with his right foot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He&#8217;s designing something.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He&#8217;s not scraping<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">dog shit of his shoes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Art is happening!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Maybe a haiku!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I&#8217;ve got to see what he&#8217;s creating!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The man turns right<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">and disappears across a bridge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Elmer and I move forward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I stop and behold the artist&#8217;s design:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It&#8217;s giant penis with testicles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It&#8217;s ejaculating!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Definitely got a poem here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Smooth Extrication<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Movement outside my front window.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I move to investigate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A gnarled and bearded<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">homeless man,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">sorts through<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">my neighbor&#8217;s garbage can<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">with a homemade<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">claw of a tool.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>This? Maybe.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>No.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Not this.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>This.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The claw extricates a garment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The extrication is silky smooth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A gray WSU hoodie.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He inspects it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He folds it neatly, tight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He sets it on his wagon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">My neighbor must have thought<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">the hoodie too dirty and threadbare to donate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It makes me wonder what I&#8217;ve thrown away<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">that still had purpose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The claw extricates another garment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Even smoother this time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A gray WSU sweatshirt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He inspects it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He folds it neatly, tight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He sets it atop the hoodie.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He makes me think of my<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">dead Uncle Dale.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A clothes horse<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">who hung up his<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">t-shirts on hangers<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">and arranged them by color.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Someone, somewhere<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">along the way<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">taught this man<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">how to fold clothes<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">like this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">His form didn&#8217;t develop<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">on its own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He&#8217;s been doing<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">it his whole life<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">and he&#8217;s now in his<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">40s or 50s.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A Dark Figure A dark figure stands at the entrance of a lighted church. Elmer the husky and I walk the neighborhood at 5:30 AM. No moon or stars seen in the sky. I see the figure. I know it&#8217;s a homeless man because I see the homeless almost every morning on our walks. Think [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8908,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10,16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8907","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-meditations","category-poetry","has-post-title","has-post-date","has-post-category","has-post-tag","has-post-comment","has-post-author",""],"builder_content":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nestuccaspitpress.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8907","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nestuccaspitpress.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nestuccaspitpress.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nestuccaspitpress.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nestuccaspitpress.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8907"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/nestuccaspitpress.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8907\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nestuccaspitpress.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8907"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nestuccaspitpress.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8907"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nestuccaspitpress.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8907"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}