poem of the day 04.28.09

fliers

this is no joke
i was walking down
nostrand avenue
updating my list of enemies
trying to decide
whether or not
to put you on it
when these two guys and a lady
opened a door to a print shop
and a box of fliers
that one of them was carrying
got caught up in the wind
the paper taking flight
and scattering down the block
me, being the kind fellow that i am
i stopped and began
picking up the fliers
while one of the men
bent and cursed the heavens
while the other continued
chasing paper down the street
the woman, she started helping too
after some laborious time
bending and digging my nails
into the pavement
i took my stack over
to one of the men
and he put it with his stack
and the stacks from the other two
it looked like we got most of them
stacks of fliers boasting tax relief
the men thanked me
and the woman smiled
then i started back down the street
only i didn’t remember
what i had been doing
until i got here to the job
but by then it was too late
so i just wanted to let you know
that you’re safe
you didn’t make my list of enemies
at least not
right now.