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.

[PoemRodent]

There has been already an echo of what I would have said in many fashions. Chloe, reaching in and capturing your inside feelings with passion for all to share is what a writer and lover of life has been given the task. You have done a very excellent job of delivering a message felt deep inside.

Love and thoughts and for this I will add a hug,

Dostani... bows.

[Emily B]

I came by to see what I could read and found this again. It was just as stirring the second time around. Your words let us walk in another human's shoes without living out on the street in the rain. Chloe, this is really sobering.

[Queen of the Damned]

Wow this is excellent. I can't even say anymore. I think everyone else has said it for me. :)

[Lydia Shutter]

The compassion in your heart is so evident in every line and even between the lines of this poem. The imagery you employ is uniquely wonderful
"a comb with most of it's teeth missing
like it forgot to visit the dentist " incredible!

Homelessness is a serious problem in our society and seems to be getting worse instead of better. We do take the little things for granted, don't we? This is a perfect poem for this time of year. We must all be thankful for what we do have. This poem is wonderful. Lydia

[Deborah Leah Krempa]

An awesome write! You have captured the plight of the homeless and have made a wonderful tribute to the less fortunate of our greedy society. Thank you for sharing and keep up the good work. We need more people to wake up and be aware of this. Debileah

[Tai Chi Italy]

This is a very sad tale highlighting a very tragic situation Chloe. As far as I am concerned whether they are drunks or addicts, or whatever, they have the right to basic food and shelter from the elements like everyone else. We have a big problem here in Britain too. One woman I observed all last year in a bus shelter, she was my age and but for the love of god, she could have been me. they took her in Eventually, or she died in the night, not sure, but I felt really bad when I realised she was no longer their, I wanted to help her, but I have done this before and the woman I tried to help many years ago, didn't want it, so I just observed what was happening with this one. We must listen to our consciences and bring all the homeless in from the cold if we can. A real heart rending piece of beautifully written poetic prose imo. Glad you are warm and safe, Tai, only just not homeless by the skin of her teeth right now!

[DOMI']

Fantastic! I don't believe it! Just before i started to read this poem, i had put some music on. Edith Piaf, the little french sparrow, and i believe that it was the best music background for the reading of this work. She was a troubled woman like Jane. She lived on streets like Jane and then, one day, she owened the Earth, but now the Earth owns her, there where she rests in peace.
I loved the story, the structure and rhymes. Touching story, a story mirror of a reality dramatic and concerning. I am glad of the statistic datas that you reported at the end, so that i could appreciate your social interest and personal worries about homelessness.
Congratulations for your work.
Love Dom X

[Angela Talbert]

Brought tears to my eyes. You make the reader feel empathy. You are right about homelessness, I experienced it as a child. The majority of homeless persons are women and childre. Great write.

[Teressa Heafner]

You send a good message. However, the flow of the poem needs work. You use too many words to get your point across. For example the line

"a comb with most of it's teeth missing "

you could have shortened to "a nearly toothless comb" or something similar.

Also, you might want to use some punctuation. You don't have to use a lot, just a comma or period here or there to help the flow. You have a great start, and with a little clean up it will be great.

[Kaykay]

very good to the piont and with a statement.