steel beams
in the construction site
over
what used to be
nice, little Spanish
here in the Lower East Side
Manhattan.
across the street,
from
the McDonald’s,
where I had
egg mcmuffin
sandwich
with a
fresh, hot coffee.
I wish
I could have had
a
hash brown,
cooked
hot,
to
complete the breakfast
meal deal,
but the extra
dollar-and-a-half
would have been
too much
for me to spare.
I miss
the ketchup
I could have had
with it, too.
I savored
the coffee, though,
and
the few moments
of bliss
biting into the
breakfast sandwich,
as well.
Outside,
swirling about
in
the balmy, January air,
against
a grey sky,
but low
to the ground, mainly,
pigeons and sea gulls
are flying, nearby.
There
are lots
of
hungry people
sleeping,
probably,
down below
in
the subway
station,
underground.
None
have
come up
as of
yet
this morning
to
this McDonald’s.
Last night,
within
a couple of city blocks,
in
this neighborhood,
I read
that over one million
people
protested President Donald J. Trump’s
inauguration
in Washington, DC,
and protested here
in New York
and other cities
across the country.
The news
said, also, that roughly 800,000
people
turned out to celebrate
to witness
the swearing-in
and the new, conservative President’s speech,
I heard, also,
here
in New York,
was strident, and
partisan.
Here in the Lower East Side
Manhattan, however,
life continues
to
on.
New York, NY