Shades
Calm
sets in after the wintry storm’s wrath
A
blanketing whiteness that impedes every path
In
the bristling cold air moves a singular frame
While
I sit in the warmth he will work all the same
Stories
reported of the common event
A
xenophobe’s ring of repeated lament
‘Round
Freehold stoppings there’s a gathering mass
The
Mexican workers standing anxious alas
Whether
legal or less so is often unclear
The
landscape and work crews they would to hope to adhere
Though
people scream wildly of jobs they might steal
‘Nary
a white man ‘mongst the group would reveal
These
poor, decent people only seek daily bread
The
venom from racists would be better unsaid
My
immersion in thoughts of past dust bowls and decay
Leave
me reflective of this man on this day
Call
the man to me; crooked teeth, short but stout
Just
a hard working spirit weathered inside and out
Hand
him a ten-spot as the least I can do
He
thanks me and smiles then he thanks me anew
Put
in perspective of a national fight
Where
some see the brown less deserving their rights
Remove
them, contain them and brand with a stain
But
they are us, we are them, we are all just the same
My
walkway is shoveled and the man shuffles on
Illegal
or legal, what this land’s built upon
We
all trace our roots to migrations as such
Whatever
the reasons, we’re alike much as much
Copyright
SGW 2013
