garbage.

my eyes drifted opposite of right
and my thoughts turned to dwell on a sight
so fitting of its direction...

he carefully, with himself as his own necessary witness,
of a life fulfilled and so complete
worked away
actions speaking illuminated moons to me
- i swear he made it make sense -
galaxies paled
as my chest beat tears each heartbeat
that couldn't reach my eyes to fall through

he did not sadden me
but the world that looked down upon him was what did
to cast a king upon the streets
carefully gripping his plastic bag
filled of treasures the rest of the world
considered disgusting garbage

his eyes determined and never strayed
like mine did
and to look up on him
i was wondering
why my knees weren't more used to kneeling...
my knees too tender
untouched by humility

and i...
watching him sift through the garbage
looking for things we forgot could use again
he had instead made me recycle my thoughts
touching all that the rest of the world would cringe
and pinch their nostrils to

i...was ashamed at my ignorance
ashamed at my own frustrations

though i am aware we all face our own demons
recognizing the lives of others
twisted my lips into a frown

i could only wonder how many times
the rag that was carefully draped at his waist
would wipe away the sweat of a day harder than any of my lifetimes
of the weariness of a lifetime doing what the rest of the world
refused to do...

but his eyes silently smiled to me
he knew...
this is where god willed him to be
he found no shame in his place
of the hierarchy of this washed out society
he stepped past their levels
and then finally...
i got it.

through his humility and understanding of the world
i understood that it really didn't matter
what they say
what we do
as long as we bring each day to a close
feeling accomplished
feeling faithful

and realizing that
our happiness is not found in what we hold in our hands
but in the strength of our grip
in the lifetimes we wrap in our fingers
the hands they hold
the hair they stroke

he reminded me of the beauty
we sometimes throw away...