Sherry Asbury Poet Blank verse

The Poor and Lonely

Today someone praised a poem I wrote
It is about considering the disenfranchised
at this supposedly jolly time of year
Why, she said, just think about all in need,
why not spend Christmas with them, she asked

Amazingly enough, that is just what I do, 
For you see I am one of the poor and disabled
whose SSD checks just do not stretch to month's end
All who live in my building experience much the same,
depending on food boxes and the generosity of others

We come in all types and sorts, full of warts and woes
Mental illness has felled a number of us terribly
They closed the hospitals and mental facilities
Just can't afford them, government says, so out
they were tossed roam the streets, incapable and lost

Poor choices plagued many tender, women who loved,
or thought they did, men who beat and burned them,
took their money and left them ill and unable to fight
Years of abuse, wisdom awakened, years more to heal
to even a bare minimum of capability to survive

So, dear tender lady, with heart of gold, trust when I say
I live with the broken and poor and lonely each day

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Darlene De Beaulieu January 22, 2019 at 2:28 PM Hello Sherry Ashbury, so nice to meet you. Yes I see your point. So much in health care has been taken away. Today i went to my doctor for meds, I notice that her hours are cut back. I was in shock.I waited a year for my toe surgery.Some people have to wait longer. Have a nice day my friend.

Gershon Wolf January 7, 2019 at 2:24 PM A poem that truly tugs at the heart. Here's to a better 2019, my friend. :) gw (soup mail)

Rhona Mcferran December 27, 2018 at 4:57 AM This truly is terrific! You have expressed so well the insurmountable obstacles that so many people face. For me, food insecurity and the lack of compassion from others have always been two of the hardest parts of this (and indignities that no one should have to endure). Like Caren, I hope things improve for you (and all the others)... You are a poet and a treasure, dear! ;)

Caren Krutsinger December 25, 2018 at 6:52 AM Ah, this one is terrific; it shines with truth and that is what the best poetry is. I think it is so wise because many simply do not know. We who do cannot understand how they do not, but ....ah, life. It is amazing how it will twist and turn people. We are flexible beings, and it is a great thing that we are. I hope your circumstances get better my friend, and theirs too. Merry Christmas.