Tag Archives: lonely

Life on the Off-ramp

Hot summer days,

A/C blasting cold and refreshing,

Music blaring from the car radio,

Cardboard signs,

“Will work for food”,

Litter the freeway off-ramps,

Held by vagrants and transients,

Dirty and broken,

Looking for food,

Looking for a better life,

Hoping to survive another day,

You pass by averting your eyes,

Pretending…no wishing they were not there,

Not because of sadness for their condition,

But out of deep seated embarrassment,

Red faced by lack of action,

Of compassion,

Of sympathy,

Seeing them as less than human,

A drain on society,

Would some spare change put you out,

Not likely,

But then you would have to face reality.

~~ D. R. DiFrancesco ~~

Invisible

This passionate heart,

Buried deep within, beating in rhythm with your every breath,

Yet I cannot find the right words to tell you so.

~~

Tongue tied by emotions in wont of regurgitation,

Swallowed back due to my own apprehension,

These burning embers sour in the pit of my stomach.

~~

I glance your way in hopes of recognition

Momentary contact from your crystalline blue eyes gives me hope

Until I realize you are looking through me.

~~

I am veiled from your sight,

The background in the play that is your life,

Dressing to complete your pretty picture.

~~

What must I do to lead in your panoply,

All that I am I would gladly bestow upon you,

Without hesitation or precondition.

~~

If only I was endowed with the fortitude,

But I am not and never have been,

Instead my timidity consumes me.

~~

Breathless I am left to watch you from the sidelines,

Only dreaming of what might have been,

Wishing that fate had shined a loving light upon us.

~~

But it was not to be,

As destiny has dictated the climax of this cruel tango,

Leaving one of us to be the wallflower.

~~ D. R. DiFrancesco ~~

Just Another Day in the Promised Land

Homeless mother and child – csindy.com

By D. R. DiFrancesco

 ~~~~

Dirty faces streaked with tears,

Revealing the shell of who they were,

In silence they live their greatest fears,

Passing by, you pray they do not stir.

~~

Their homes a box, a shantytown,

No cover from rain, sleet or snow,

Living with luck or fate torn down,

With arrogance you look away from those below.

~~

Sisters, brothers, mothers, fathers,

They too were once like you,

Annoyed you pass, you can’t be bothered,

With these paupers, beggars and shrews.

~~

They did not ask for their station in life,

For many, no fault of their own,

They huddle with daughter, son and wife,

On these sidewalks and alleys alone.

~~

Lift yourself up and make your own way,

With what, is a question to be asked,

Struggling to eat day to day,

There’s no time for their plight to be masked.

~~

A little compassion would go a long way,

Helping pick up our fellow man,

With food and warmth and a safe place to stay,

Simple basics since time began.

~~

So many are one paycheck away,

From the life these nightmares are made of,

In darkness they hope to keep poverty at bay,

Saying prayers to their God in Heaven above.

~~

From that vagrant you see do not dart your eyes,

Instead offer an honest helping hand,

Remember the innocent child who cries,

Dirty, hungry and homeless in this promised land.