At Home In Washington Square

~

~

Last year, spring was nice, summer was grand, fall was pretty,

but the coming winter nagged at the fringes of my mind.

I took every opportunity to bask in the sun

wherever and whenever I could find it, storing up that Vitamin D

for when it would be withheld because of rain, ice and snow.

I was right to worry.

Christmas was a drag, as it always is

now that I have lived, loved and lost.

January was hell scrounging for food, shelter and warmth,

and at the same time determined to be independent,

though a part of the dregs of society.

Then February came--

the coldest in twenty-five years with its record snow fall

and ice enough to freeze one's independent spirit,

at least for a time.

I gave in.  I presented myself each evening at the KC rescue mission

for a warm supper, a religious service, and a bed for the night

--except--

there was no bed, only a blanket on a tile floor

with hundreds like me trying to survive the winter.

The many bunks provided are always taken long before

I have a chance to even hope.

But at least there is stale warmth,

and its in out of the wind, and ice storms that chill the bones.

Rolled in my blanket on the hard floor,

my few belongings clasped to my chest, my shoes on my feet,

I listened to the snores and farts, the coughs, and suspicious sounds

that might warn of impending foul play.

I closed my eyes and tried to flee from the wafting of the

smelly feet, body odor and passed gas

by dreaming of last summer--

the best I've had since I took to the streets....

~ 

Photo:

Washington Square Park, Kansas City

bounded by Weston Crown Center, the Hyatt Regency Hotel, the Union Station, Liberty Memorial,

and with a view of the Downtown Kansas City skyline