Two women
in berkeley
on the street
try to sell me God and the Bible and love
as I lean against the bank pillar
watching the teenagers circle up
outside of the BART station
and they say it is up to me
to decide: for my faith to grow and my bottom to hit
and I think of these teenagers
they like looking tough and they like thier dark clothes
the way people steal tiny glances and not full blown stares
and when the suits do stare, they look away quickly
to some interesting object on thier shoe.
These women are in plain clothes
of plain cotton
and thier hair is hardly brushed
thier teeth are white and thier smiles open
and it is getting late, I think, the fog is rolling into the hills
and the church stands out dark and dismal against that white cloudy mist
so I know it is an omen of some kind
and I tell these ladies that i’ve had enough
I am ready for rebirth
I want his light
and his love
and they laugh and walk away and my watch says
it is time to go
home.
copyright eak 1998
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