by John Clinton
II. Chinatown
Inside of the Columbus Park pavilion
is a salt & pepper pony tailed man
teaching T’ai chi ch’uan to the young
Beneath the emerald & violet umbrellas
elderly women feverishly deal cards
as gray pigeons depart into the red sun
Joyous bands play exotic instruments
my blue eyes have never seen before
& my naive ears have never heard
Reciting in their native tongue
poetry & song I can only imagine
the beauty of, with no words
A homeless man dressed in dust
freights his entire fucking life
on his arched & aching back
Chefs in white & soiled aprons
converse & smoke cigarettes
in shadows beside stray cats
Underneath the Manhattan Bridge
are a myriad of fruit stands & lazy flies
The skin of oranges litter the pavement
as the stench of dead fish waft in the sky
An infinite parade of plastic Buddhas
become reincarnated through recycling
Deafening machinery vibrates above
foreign signs lighting up fire escapes
Into dragon flames of neon graffiti
a tsunami of tourist heads are bobbing
East & West across an arid Canal
where yellow blood proudly bleeds
III. Little Italy
right into Mulberry street
taking refuge from the heat
in Saint Patrick’s Old Cathedral
the marble statues do not move
as my body temperature cools
sunlight gleams right through
the stained glass windows
reflecting on this stranded soul
Suddenly, in the sound of silence
& the stillness of shelter I begin to pray
Our Father who
art in heaven, hallowed
be thy name; thy kingdom come
thy will be done on earth
as it is in heaven
give us this day our daily bread
& forgive us our trespasses
as we forgive those who trespass
against us & lead us
not into temptation
but deliver us
from evil
Amen
My eyes begin to swell with tears
Hail Mary, full of grace
the Lord is with thee
blessed art thou among women
& blessed is the fruit
of thy womb, Jesus
Holy Mary, Mother of God
pray for us sinners now
& at the hour of our death
Amen
Mixing with the sweat from my brow
tears burn down my cheeks in repentance
Glory be to the Father
& to the Son
& to the Holy Spirit
as it was in the beginning
is now & ever shall be
world without end
Amen
I am sobbing uncontrollably now
