Under the over-
pass, a hopeless man
dreams of better times,
times when homelessness
he deemed a destination
for drunkards and thieves
a binge/crash shelter redeemed
for one night, not one month
not for a middle-aged, middle
class white-collar failure,
not a father who defaulted
on his wife and baby,
who fell over the fiscal
cliff head first, landing
under an over
pass alone,
he dreams
of reprieve.
*
Prompt inspiration~ dVersePoets:MeetingTheBar-GraffitiPoetry w/Anna- I went searching for graffiti, and this is what I found. The photo inspired the poem.
i know of former doctors that live on the street now cause at some point in their lives things started to go wrong.. great wordplay here laurie and a compassionate heart..
dang…sad bit of reality there….times change fast and one wrong move will def put you there….this brought to mind a fav book of mine….called Under the Overpass…about a guy that lived as a homeless man for a year…foresaking everything to understand their life….actually met the author…really cool…
How interesting… I bet that was a life-changing experiment. I’ve not heard of the book before, but will have to check into it.
That sounds devastating. The graffiti replacing the living room decorations… And after a fiscal cliff.. That’s great writing.
So true, especially these days. I just heard about the canning documentary short film on NPR, apparently the number of people on the street in NYC has significantly increased. This is an excellent response to the prompt.
This is a sad story but a realistic one…a lot of people are in this situation now ~ Very well done Laurie ~
your structure is wonderful. I love how your first and last lines touch each other… offering hope from the continual tumbling under and over.
Harsh bit of reality here Laurie and wonderfully penned.
My work brings me in contact with those who have fell by the wayside – but mostly those who have never achieved white-collar success.
To have all and then to have it taken away must be devastating.
Anna
]
Such a sad reality for many, there’s not much between a comfy bed and the street anymore… powerful words.
So powerful! I love the way you have spun the “under” and “over” tones. Cheers!
so much graffiti is located in those places….it’s life…albeit the unhappier side ….all it takes sometimes are a couple of bad breaks ..;)
Wow…what a take on this. Painful reality in a gritty write. Well done.
Laurie, I love this. Especially your line break that allows this line to sneak in:
“pass a hopeless man”
ah… and anyone could be here one day… great thoughts
powerful. truth. we need a different economics.
So sad, Laurie. Like wolfsrosebud says, any of us could be that man.
strong response Laurie, really hit the “nobody plans on it” angle and how it could happen to anyone if things are/were different. Nicely hit on the social themes as well here. Very nicely done. Thanks
Great response Laurie…People have ended up on the street that never dreamed they would be there…Thanks for such gritty truth.
This is a wonderfula nd timely poem. Back in 2009, I went down into the valley outside Fresno and two mini cities full of just such people had sprung up – homeowners who lost it all when Obama threw the economy into the toilet. You never thought you’d see such a thing again in this country.
Incisive comment on the times we live in, I think.
This is indeed the reality of more people than we care to realize…felt.
You tell of the surprise homelessness often is, eloquently, honestly and with dignity.
http://www.kimnelsonwrites.com/2013/02/22/it-is-written-vehicles-of-the-word/
There but for the grace of God go many of us who are luckier than others.
…go here and you’ll find more people living under overpass… a devastating & truly heart ripping scene how they ended up there… how sad to note while others are living in too much pleasure there are many others who are living in vain… who’s to blame when in reality both sides have faults in this… enjoyed your piece Laurie… smiles…
Sad – and you raise points worth pondering.
the dreams are important; some are content with what life has brought them. and it really is amazing how one’s world could turn so quickly and leave them stranded.