DieterM
02-06-2013, 11:01 AM
Sad man with the shaggy beard,
Hunched shoulders, grubby clothes
Blood-shot eyes, black-rimmed fingernails,
When you approached, I braced myself
For another whiny, slurred speech,
But you said, “It’s cold today!”
I wanted to give you a cigarette
Because I was feeling weak,
But you said, “I’m not a beggar, sir!”
And then you picked up all the butts
From the company ashtray.
“They’re for my son,” you said,
“Only fourteen and smokes!”
The wind was blowing away
My certainties, my cigarette clouds
While you put the butts in an envelope
And I wanted to believe you
But I just couldn’t. “Do you think
It’s true that if you put butts
Under a pillow, someone will quit
Smoking?” you asked, and I said,
“No.” You smiled a sad and crooked smile,
Sad man with the shaggy beard,
And walked away, and I stayed behind,
Ready to weep in that cold, cold wind.
Hunched shoulders, grubby clothes
Blood-shot eyes, black-rimmed fingernails,
When you approached, I braced myself
For another whiny, slurred speech,
But you said, “It’s cold today!”
I wanted to give you a cigarette
Because I was feeling weak,
But you said, “I’m not a beggar, sir!”
And then you picked up all the butts
From the company ashtray.
“They’re for my son,” you said,
“Only fourteen and smokes!”
The wind was blowing away
My certainties, my cigarette clouds
While you put the butts in an envelope
And I wanted to believe you
But I just couldn’t. “Do you think
It’s true that if you put butts
Under a pillow, someone will quit
Smoking?” you asked, and I said,
“No.” You smiled a sad and crooked smile,
Sad man with the shaggy beard,
And walked away, and I stayed behind,
Ready to weep in that cold, cold wind.