at 5:37 p.m. the smell of
bacon and fabric softener
covers the neighborhood
like 4 a.m. London fog
so many lies and angers
and injustices and tears
and hungers and losses
in one city block
but the smiles, oh
those immutable smiles
and the hope in the paper sacks
dog shit by the fichus trees
is the city’s way of welcome
but the carnival in the hearts
and the corn fed regimes in mind
cannot and will not tear
them down
angst, terror and hate
has become a child’s game
the roses are not free
but they are in juan v’s
can along the window
rotten with defeat
it is no longer enough
to wave the right flags
blood sacrifice one son
to the blue coats and one the
the Vat
no we have become
smarter than you
and we will not
lay down to the east
or to the west
but resign to be
free in the window
in the door
in our spirit
and in the mind
words less spoken 