Passage

As I pull up to the white line, to wait for the red light
on a misty, chilly night, I glance out the window
I notice him sitting in the alleyway, half shrouded
in the dark shadows, of a world I could never imagine.

He sits hunched over, trying to preserve whatever small amount
of warmth, he can arouse from his tired old body
his clothes are tattered and soiled, I can see his toes
and parts of the bottom of his feet, grimy, practically indistinguishable
from the worn soles of his old shoes, barely held together by pieces of string.

I watched as his breath labored from his mouth, faintly
visible in the dim light of another world,
a world I had never witnessed, never wanted to see, while
I sat in the comfort and security of a world this man would never know.

I felt ashamed, hopeless, frightened, unable to accept
the cold reality of my vision, how could it have gone this far,
why have we left this man to die alone on a cold bare street
I stare into his eyes as he looks up, I see the pain,
the helplessness and the suffering of humanity, in his eyes.

A shiver runs down my back, as his eyes slowly extinguish
his haunting gaze, I watch him lean against the alley wall, fading into the darkness
the light is green, as I pull away, but part of me is left behind
I realize as I drive away, I'll never see him again, nor will I forget him.