As you pass him by
You divert your eyes
The ones you hide behind
For fear your worlds collide
Close proximity
Thru my peripheral I surmise
That ignorance and entitlement
Dance behind your blinds
Dare you divert your eyes
Ostracize and cast him aside
For this is someone’s child
Once a gleam in his mother’s eyes
Why divert your eyes
At this man who’s clearly alive
For his broken down soul
Still strongly thrives
The travels of this journeyman
Wear crudely on each side
The torment of life’s elements
Layer on his skin, live and die inside his mind
This man is clearly destitute
Or a bum if you vilify
But who are you to judge
Someone you haven’t sat beside
When saw you pass behind him
And toss a meager dime
I lowered my head and sighed
So sad for you, he and even I
This man isn’t institutionalized
He doesn’t terrorize
All the laws he abides
Yet still it is he you stigmatize
So next time you slither by
Stop and look him in both eyes
Try a smile on for size
It’s for the grace of God go you, go I.
