Bystander

You'll never believe what I saw in the park.
A man started shouting and striking a woman,
Who cried out. She bent to protect her baby,
Who screamed in her stroller. I dropped the
Croissant that I'd bought for breakfast (with
Cream cheese and ham), and I thought about
Rushing to ward off the blows of that odious
Man, but I didn't. I sat, and, in time, perhaps
Because someone had called them, the cops
Came and hauled off that man. The woman,
And also her baby, kept crying, and I ate my
Sandwich, more certain than ever, that I was
A cowardly shit.



Poetry by Lawrence Beck The PoetBay support member heart!
Read 53 times
Written on 2021-09-30 at 02:54

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