"Happiness" - Written 28/04/08

I saw two men sitting
in a doorway, laughing,
Ragged hair on their chins,
Tired eyes in their faces.
Their clothes were weather-worn,
Old newspapers their seats.

I could not understand these men,
Smiling, as it were, in their hollow,
Hardly a penny between them,
No luxuries for them in the streets,
While I sat, returning from work,
In a comfortable vehicle, heading
for a comfortable home.

I smile in glimpses, semi-seconds,
In my life of luxury and protection.
How do these men remain laughing,
Empty card cups clutched in their laps?

Perhaps life is not built monetarily,
but these moments, semi-seconds of smiles?
We get caught up in trifle distractions,
and need these men to remind us.