Once Beautiful
Image by: Heidi
Shapely – once beautiful
Woman – now a reflection
Of drug war casualties
Dull eyes – foul mouth
Cursing cars that stop
Allowing her to cross and
Those that don’t offer her
Permission to propel herself
Forward via walker
In her midriff to mid-calf tight
Blue slitted skirt and red bra
Stops in the middle of the street
To free her patriotism from the
Width of those hips
Left foot socked and shod
Right foot casted and covered
With a filthy flag sock
AWOL OR POW still in battle
In this country in -LA County
Winces with the pain of ambulation
Wonder if a man call pimp crushed
Her leg or a driver that she cursed
Used his wheels as a weapon
Wonder if she knows
She was once beautiful
Wonder if she’ll be
Beautiful – once again
– 1996
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