The streets were busy again
the unfamiliar rain causes almost everyone
to walk along arm in arm.
The sky has been threatening all day
we ignored the forecasts, yeah right,
we probably shouldn’t have, in introspect
this is the heavy hour for a downpour.
I’m approached by homeless girl,
“Do you have any extra guitar strings?”
Obviously, the strings are a miss,
but I do have $20, and I’m starving.
The dilemma, it was a genuine request
not for alcohol or drugs but guitar strings.
I’m not sure what I would have asked for
if I were homeless on a rainy night.
I promise the girl that I’ll return,
oh the irony, I’m looking for food
in order to get some change for guitar strings.
Perfect, a slice of pizza and a soda,
certainly enough to get full.
I hand the cashier a$20, I kid you not,
“I apologize, but I only have silver dollars for change. Is that ok?”
I’m sure it will buy her guitar strings,
with a couple of lbs of change, I return.
The rain is pouring buckets, everyone
homeless or otherwise are huddling
underneath the close building overhangs.
I reach my car, the homeless girl watches,
I wave for her to come over here.
Underneath my umbrella, I smell nicotine
I reach and hand her a fist of silver dollars.
The look in her eyes, she flipped each coin,
her reaction was reward enough.
“Use these coins to make magic”
she turned and said,
“Sir, I accept the challenge.”
she walked back to her encampment
still staring at her magic coins.
Dragonflypoetry.com 