The man in the
Uniform is what
I never wanted
To be
But here I am
Standing guard
At a super market
In the not-so
Rich part
Of town
The black and brown
And white and yellow
(And occasional red)
People walk by grabbing
Shopping carts
The badge over
My heart glints
In the artificial
Overhead lights
The economy is bad
Right now, people are
Losing homes, jobs
I guess I’m
Lucky to
Have this job
I thought myself
A revolutionary but
Find myself watching
Folks
Wondering if they’re
Concealing stolen
Merchandise
A black man walks
By with a
glorious head
Of hair
It flows like
Some sort
Of waterfall
I look at it
In amazement
He looks at me
And says, what
Are you looking
At?
Are you racially profiling me?
All I can do
Is stand and
Say nothing
How can I
Tell him that he
Has one of the most
Impressive toupees I’ve
Ever seen in my life?
I stay quiet
And write in
My log book:
All is secure
© 2009 Tony Robles