On the Off Ramp

On my way

To physical therapy

Hoping to ease

My maladies

Here is this man

On the off ramp

Grizzled weathered

(I could be him

He could be me)

Sitting in a lush

Patch of grass

And fast-food litter

Shaded by bright signs

Directions to turn

This way or that

Eat here or there

A piece of cardboard

In his lap in black

Magic marker reads

“PLEASE HELP”

On a whim I

Intended to roll

Down my window

And empty my wallet

For him but the

Light turned green

There’d be horns

Impatience for

Drive-thru

Chicken fingers

Burgers and fries

On my way home

I hoped his

Situation might be

More convenient

---

David Sapp, writer, artist, and professor, is a Pushcart nominee. His work appears widely in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. His publications include chapbooks Close to Home and Two Buddha, a novel Flying Over Erie, and a book of poems and drawings titled Drawing Nirvana.