With No Earphones in, I Hear This (poem)

A homeless man I know
screams "HELLO! HELLO!"
from across a wide Boston
street. He spotted me!
I look up and over to see him
waving frantically, gloved hand
in the air. "MERRY CHRISTMAS!"
he yells. "HAPPY HOLIDAYS!"
I cup my hands and return, "HELLO
THERE! BACK ATCHA!"
and my pit is strangely warmed
by this clear recognition
of an unlikely friend across four
lanes of December traffic.

Into the Eyes (poem)

Eyes have stared at me
this week, eyes belonging to men
I've known a long time.
One of them sez to me,
"You deserve the best --
you have a great ass and
a great personality and
you need a man who wants you
and only you." I smile
at him, old friend, and say,
"Yes" and "Thank you."
The other eyes just stare
with little to say besides
"Yes" and "Thank you."
Irony is never wasted
on me even though I clamor
for a longer stare into the eyes
of someone who is right,
who wants to look only
into my eyes, like I deserve.