Welcome winter.
Steam rises from a street grate.
Red traffic lights presage the season.
Christmas has come and gone in the city.
Today is almost New Year.
Tinsel governs the gala.
I am not invited.
Perhaps next years party will be mine.
But today I live on the streets.
Cold is my companion.
Destitution is my destiny.
Every man in every hour has questioned his faith.
I question humankind.
Will I be kept outside in the dark or invited in?
Do not forget me I once was your brother.
Perhaps love is all I need to rejoin the party.
My simple needs can not compare with your complexity.
If I promise not to stand next to you will you promise to give me shelter?
Don’t see me for my outward appearance but for the man inside,
the mirror image of you.
See me with the eyes of god.
Open your heart like a flower
Compassion not wealth is the true power.
If we touch human to human
You will see your reflection in my eyes.
Your smile will be sincere.
You will know there is nothing to fear.
COPYRIGHT JF ANSTEAD 2010
