Jane

I am featuring this because of the severe winter weather happening in most of the USA I thought about this last night when the temperature dropped to 12 degrees~ 'She forgot who she was"..

 

 

 

She walks the streets
no shoes adorn her feet
bare
bruised
rough, calloused

She finds solace in an
old suitcase
it holds all her belongings
she treasures them

A book of poetry
a purple silk scarf
a comb with most of it's teeth missing
like it forgot to visit the dentist
and
a picture
little girl
blonde
blue eyes with
a smile that lights the darkest rooms

She knows of dark rooms
she lives in darkness
she had a flat but her job
well, her job let her go
so the man said, "Get Out"
she tried to get another job
"we're not hiring", they always said

After a time , a long time
she forgot her name
now,
well, now
she roams the dirty boulevard
and wonders who she is
and how she got here
she wonders who the little girl is
who's smile lights the darkness in which she lives

People sneer at her
laugh, point , stare
a woman with faded blue eyes
dirty blond hair
in Salvation Army rags
they laugh
they make her feel
'uncomfortable'
they call her
the bag lady
among other names

Sometimes she cries
though she is used to it
her stomach gnaws with hunger pains
as she searches the trash and dumpsters
for a crumb
just a crumb
one crumb

The man at the bakery watches her
his heart is not hard
he calls her
she doesn't hear him
because
she doesn't want to

She knows what he wants
laughing
sneering
pointing
she walks past

Some nights she sees Angels
they call her name
"Jane"
"Jane"
"Hello Jane,
do you know
someday you will inherit
this Earth"?

Someday isn't soon enough for
sweet Jane
someday needs to be today

"Jane, don't cry",
they say
"someday"
"someday"
"someday"

"Please", she whispers
"help me find my way home"
"please", she cries
"let me be visible again"

She feels so alone
she is alone
but when she looks at the faded photograph
her heart feels lighter
the world
brighter

She coughs a lot
her house leaks
her nose runs
her stomach aches with hunger pangs

The Angels visit her every day now
"Jane, someday is now"
"Are you going to show me the way home"?

"Follow the light Jane"
She feels warm for the first time
in so long
the feeling is surreal
the light radiates throughout her
filling her,satiating the hunger
cold, loneliness

In the distance
beneath a tree of
fragrant blossoms
by a stream as clear as crystaline crystal
sets the little girl
"Mommy", she cries
"You finally came home"




 

Author's Note

I am glad I wrote this one on wordpad.. people need to be aware of this ... and not all homeless are drug addicts or alcoholics.. most are people like you and me .. it is said most Americans are one paycheck away from being homeless.. it could happen to any of us!

Reviews

[Lionel Braud]

this poem has a lot going, it is a narrative poem full of heeartache and hope, and has a harsh sense of realism, contemporary urban realism, lot of rhymes and off rhymes, slant rhymes, good use of dialogue, not many use dialogue, robert frost did, this incorporates lots of poetic styles.

[Gandré]

That's true, this could happen any of us.. Chloe I missed your poetry, you always leave me with questions.. and I think love is about giving.. there are no differences this or that.. why not to love everything and everyone.. wonderful poem, Chloe.. u were missed.

[OT]

very well said!!! and written - your message is very relevant in this contemporary society where so many are quick to judge!! from what I've read all of your poetry has a profound punch and isn't just riddled with idiosyncrasies and tricks but rather real motive and reason!!! very nice!!

[Bee]

Totally engrossed in reading this. Nothing more to say but GOOD JOB. I feel Jane. I see Janes everywhere. I'm not American, though, but this could happen to anyone in the world, and it is already happening.
It's a sad reality, but we must fight it. Everyone is entitled to have a real home.
Very heart-warming ending. Our real comfort is with our loved ones.
Thank you for this. So many reviews already.

[Marie Anzalone]

Reminsicent in some ways of Yeats, "Crazy Jane Talks to the Bishop". It is easy to be righteous and compassionate when all of your needs are met. You are absolutely correct when you say, "some day isn't soon enough". When the belly is empty, a meal is needed now, not a lecture on how you didn't do enough to deserve to eat.

[...]

. you are all heart ... all soul ... all love ... you are a goddess ... an angel ... in all her beauty ... embodying all the dimensions of compassion ... hope ... resilience ... courage ... and grace ... there is no poet like you ... because for that ... they'd first have to be the person you are ... your poetic voice has the power and vocabulary of a divine proclamation with a humane spirit ... shine on, dudette, across the board ... across the universe ... everywhere ..

CONGRATULATIONS!

(THE LINK TO THIS WINNING ENTRY IN TFDB'S POET OF THE WEEK - III IS IN YOUR MAIL. OWING TO A SOFTWARE GLITCH, AM UNABLE TO DECLARE RESULTS AS OF NOW.)

[The Analog Kid]

Real nice sentiments. Unfortunately, our government would rather give our money to other contries than help our downtrodden.

[Gomer LePoet]

This is sad but true story of the times of the day. I read all the time of families living out of their cars, thru no fault of their own. Most just want a job, a break, someone to care. while others flaunt there wealth, gained on the backs of the working class who have been tossed aside, so some asswipe can buy another vacation home, another car, another bottle of brandy, and getting another bonus check for wiping out another no-face family.

[Desert Dreamer]

You did a great job in writing this poem, such a beautifully written poem and such a sad subject...we should all be aware of this situation and not just look the other direction. You made Jane real. Thank you for sharing.

[Truly Ross-Wisehart]

Such a timely narrative. 'Jane' could be any one of many of us...at any time. You walked us through what had become her life with such gentle caring while showing us the harshness of her reality. Very well written, Ms. Chloe!

~True

[Jason Ellis]

Moving. Touching.
It hits home, in the reader's heart.
It fills their soul with love for the woman with nothing and, consequently, for the little girl of which there is no apparent memory.
Very well written, and such a great topic.
I absolutely loved it.