The Mirror Effect

The road we travel is obvious to everyone but ourselves.

[Life]

I

A man with no shoes

walks by with a limp.

His arms -

covered

in tattoos

and scars -

are lethargic

by choice.

The biting

winter sun

delivers respite

from late December

northerlies.

He reeks of Franzia.

Redolent, it shadows

him, haunts

him like what he drinks

to forget.

His unkempt white beard

is stained yellow

around the mouth

from years of cigarettes

and no-shave Novembers.

He dons a jacket

- faded glory -

that is two sizes too small

and his pants stay together

like a couple for their kids.

Too proud to join

the Salvation Army

on Christmas Eve,

he finds his bench,

lies down

and survives

one

more

night.

II

A man in a suit

drives home in an Audi.

His collar

is stained

with cheap lipstick

and Chateau Lagrange

from last night's

late night meetings.

Angie, his wife,

waits anxiously

at the door

of their four bedroom,

three and a half bath

Victorian.

Her eyes -

still puffy

and red -

fixated up Swann St.

She is not blinking

and barely breathing.

The kids

have been sent to Grandma's

for the night.

They watch TV -

SpongeBob SquarePants.

The Audi

drives by a man on a bench

He looks asleep -

possibly dead.

The suit inside thinks to himself:

“That poor man.”

Author's Note

I'm sorry I keep changing this thing! haha. I am really never satisfied with a poem. :) What do you think of it now?

Reviews

[What happened to simple..]

I'm glad I stumbled upon this =) so very glad! Such a sweet flow you got going on there, every word meant so much, and the 'suit' at the end is genius, though I would have loved it if the S were capitalised =P

but such great irony, sarcasm, really fab =) xx

[cassandra violet]

seriously, WOW. This was... I can't even describe its perfection in words. I loved EVERYTHING about it, the composition, the language, the message. A must needed addition to my favorites. There is something so real about your style of writing, but yet something so mystical about it at the same time. I loved how you set up the contrast between the homeless man and the wealthy man and then had their lives cross, using irony to end what we know if a horrible fate for both men. You show how bad things can happen to us no matter who we are, just in different ways.

[Jordan]

I like part one better this way. My only complaint is that I don't like the stanza in part two about his wife and their house. It feels forced and unnecessary.

[nono]

I'm not good with crisisim, but I do find this amazing. And truly I mean it. Really impressive how you set the 21st century theme up, but it goes so much deeper than just childish aspects with "Spongbob SquarePants." I think it's a fantastic poem!

[Ashley]

i really enjoy it

[livinglifeloud]

This is a very impressive poem. I like how you connect the two different men by making them total opposites, show how different, yet strangely similar their lives are. Very good.

[Sunny Skye]

I really like it. Is well written and it has a lot that other people might relate to in wars and things like that or maybe one day we might even relate too. ^_^

[KATHY SUE SILLS]

Very well written poem on two men in different situations! love it!

[Jeff]

Wow! You captured both men's troubles so well.

[Nobody.]

I like it even more now. cheers!