Wednesday, October 24, 2007

Drug addict (prejudice poem)

I catch a glimpse of a man
trying to get money
he had a cigarette
perched in his mouth

But the man was carrying a bag with letters on it
inside a bit of money
he's what I call a drug addict-

a drug addict who asks for money
a drug addict who is dirty
a drug addict who doesn't care about life but only drugs

he turns and faces me
he looks away
as he sees my eyes

I pass the drug addict quickly, with disgust
wandering why he wonted money
was it for drugs?

when I look back with the question in mind
my jaw jrops when I see the letters on the bag:
money for cancer research.

I catch a glimpse of a man
trying to get money
he had a cigarette
perched in his mouth

he was collecting money
he was saving a life

2 comments:

Adam Gelmon said...

Adam,

This poem does exactly what you intended--it grabs you, makes you feel one way, and then reveals the (sad) truth, that our prejudices can often interfere.
Excellent word choices (specifically with the cigarette "perched" in the man's mouth.

Your final stanza is perfect.

Thanks for sharing this.

-Mr. G.

Nini said...
This comment has been removed by the author.