A Poem about the Meal for the Homeless at St. Mary's in Painesville

Sweet September Evening at the Homeless Meal

Under blue skies, temperature around 77,

about a hundred people in the green grove

behind St. Mary’s Church--here in Painesville, Ohio,

gather for the Thursday night meal for the homeless.

This sweet evening, the guests are calm and happy,

chattering as they line up for a fine meal:

meatloaf, mashed potatoes, green and yellow beans,

green salad, pasta salad, dessert,

coffee, iced tea . . . conversation, laughter--

gee we all know what lurks three months down the road,

(the darkness, the bitter, the difficulty)

and we know about thirty of these men, women, children, and

babies sleep in the woods behind the old power plant

or along the banks of the Grand River, or in abandoned homes,

garages, sheds, porches--

but tonight we all laugh and eat and

then just sit a while, in the 6 pm slant light

of a calm and sweet September evening.

Bob Coughlin September 18, 2015