An Ode to New York City
Ah, New York…
--
Ah New York,
The City that never sleeps
Because its so exasperated
Ah New York,
The City that never sleeps
Because its possessed
by desperation
Ah New York,
The city that smells of
hot garbage
in the summer
and
where the wind
whips you with
displeasure
in the winter
Subway cars are awash
with the sorrowful faces
that ride them
in the morning
and
in the evening
“We are being held momentarily
by the train’s dispatcher,”
You hear, as you walk
into the car
as you leave work
Time passes.
No movement.
The train turns local.
“Another hour,” you quietly mutter.
Another hour without your family
Another hour you sit
and wait while time passes by.
Another hour you wait
on the
Unpredictable
Subway platform.
It grows darker and the night
grows bolder.
Ah, New York
You say to yourself
as you finally get home
and you see the
weekly cockroach sighting
on your vinyl kitchen floor.
You sit down at the dinner table
looking at the fast-food
burger slop and fries
that you picked up
on the way
“home”
You had plans to make yourself
something special
after the rough day you had
But plans never pan out here.
Another day slaving away
for fast-food and aching muscles
Another day you didn’t
work on your novel
go to the gym
make a healthy dinner
call your mother
Another day you’ve put off
Another day squandered
How long can this keep up?
How long can I endure?
The weight of existence
in a modern city
crushes the spirit of man
We’re all ants.
