Tag Archives: homeless

Peeling Back The Layers

Peeling back the layers

Like an onion of marble, brick, wood,

Concrete, steel and plaster.

What lies beneath this man-made skeleton?

Flesh, blood, bone,

Hopes, dreams, promise,

Failure, disappointment, longing,

Pain, suffering and sorrow,

Wrapped in the package human.

Wealth nor status makes one immune.

Life infects rich and poor alike,

Birth and death spare no one,

Entering into their pact with nothing

And fulfilling the contract with no reward.

These truths are guaranteed

Despite a desire to bury them in denial, religion or alcohol.

Make what you will of your life

Ignore those that cry to you with outstretched hands,

Divert your eyes from malnourishment,

Turn your back on humanities fallen,

Do this and more without conscience

As a soulless miscreant is bound to do.

This is your choice.

Or join this race we all run…offering,

Time, money, love,

Compassion, sympathy, understanding,

A helping hand, encouragement,

As much or as little as you have,

This is what it means to be human,

To be in communion,

Asking nothing in return.

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

Scavenging

Scavenging,

Through trash bins,

Rubbish heaps,

Loitering beyond alley doors,

Waiting for “the good stuff”.

Jagged nails,

Through fingerless gloves,

Sort through treasures,

Maybe a doughnut,

Scrap of bread,

Half eaten burger,

A meal fit for a king.

Seen on steam grate mattresses,

Fetal curl for warmth;

Passersby arc wide birth

To avoid their touch.

Rain draws trash bag slickers,

Doorways, cardboard,

Rags for umbrellas,

Taxi’s thrown sludge sprays the invisible

With cities dirt and grim.

Will they be here tomorrow?

Will anyone notice their absence?

As their shopping cart sits idle

Ravaged by fellow unseen.

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

Skinned Knees

Skinned knees

Blood red

Torn pants

Frayed rope belt

Too big for frail frame

~

Nails caked

Hands shake

Dirty hands

Utensils for eating

Food is scarce

~

Shirt ragged

Sleeves ripped

Buttons missing

Better than nothing

Shopped from trash

~

Face leather

Beard unshaven

Hair matted

No place to shower

Embarrassed by odor

~

Scrap cardboard

Help Me Please

Eyes pleading

Can you spare a dime

Will you spare a dollar

~

Looking away

He’s invisible

Just a bum

Remember his knees

He wounds like us

~

You pray to God

Recite His passages

Holier than thou

Looking down your nose

You detestable hypocrite

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

Simpler Life – A Tanka

gandhi

A simpler life

Could any of us live it

Like that of Gandhi

Living in moderation

Among the less fortunate

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

Dusty Bus Stop Bench – A Tanka

Dusty bus stop bench

Ragged, dirty, unshaven

Traffic racing by

You didn’t speak, just stared

As I offered what I could

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

Boarded Windows

Boarded windows,

Graffiti covered,

Paint peeling,

Chain link rusted,

Grass overgrown,

Strewn with litter,

Sidewalks cracked,

Shutters hanging,

Door unhinged,

Doorbell silent,

No one home,

For Sale sign,

Bank owned,

No ones buying,

House after house,

Block after block

City after city,

All the same,

Plant closed,

Jobs left,

Gone for good,

Overseas,

What to do

Same old question,

Same old answer,

No food,

No home,

No job,

No one cares.

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

Welcome to the New Main Street – A Tanka

Hope springs eternal

Just a phrase to so many

Whose hope has faded

Left destitute and alone

Welcome to the new Main Street

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

Take My Hand

Image,Credit: homesweethomeless.com

Image,Credit: homesweethomeless.com

A last look…Goodbye;

To this home we once called home.

Tossed out like garbage,

Circumstance counts for nothing.

Outcast by neighbors once friends.

~

Stranded on the streets.

Possibility for work

Without an address,

Hopeless beyond a nightmare.

Where will our family live?

~

In America

This happens far too often.

Promises broken,

Greed and profit motivate,

Leaving us impoverished.

~

“Pick yourself up!”, cried,

“By what?”, when you have nothing?

An offer to help,

A chance to practice what’s preached,

This is our sacred duty.

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

Though We Never Met – A Tanka

My dearest of friends

Though our paths have never crossed

Call me your brother

Fall into my outstretched arms

I will be there to catch you

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

Over A Barrel

Coffee thick and strong,

Cooked over an panhandlers stove.

~

A barrel fire for warmth,

Trash confiscated as fuel.

~

Emitting the foulest of odors,

Room for but a few.

~

Night frigid under tenement shadows,

Shanties erected haphazard.

~

Rags moth eaten and ragged,

Held up by anything scavenged.

~

Shelters vulnerable to the storm,

Little choice in the matter.

~

Homes taken,

Jobs shipped overseas.

~

Children hungry and cold,

Let down by an unsympathetic people.

~

A movie scene?

No, these are real lives.

~

Real people,

This is life on the street.

~~ D. R. DiFrancesco ~~