the penniless woman on the corner screams out
"stop hurting me! stop hurting me! stop hurting me!"
she yells up at the sky and continues,
"why does everyone hurt each other!?
why does everyone hurt each other?!"
i hand her the only change in my pocket -
a fifty cent coin my friend gave me to cheer me up
that night our belligerent friend called me a fag.


i get home and quickly warm up my lunch,
taking a look at the conversations on my desktop
from the night before.

"did i really say that?"

i shake my head in embarrassment and relief
that i finally got those words
out of my head.

the chicken is still a little cold,
but i eat it anyway.

all this talk about insanity with my mom lately
makes me think about the woman on the corner.
were we too soon in believing we finished dodging
tragedy. over and over again, together.

she gives me the last of her extra money
to pay off my last parking ticket.

i eat these cold leftovers
and think, "buddy, welcome to reality."

i finish my last cigarette
and run back to work.