The assignment here was to write a poem pretending you are someone else. This one is not one of my stronger poems and was also not edited after submission.

Life on the Streets

i'm sitting on my park bench
in the morning. fancy
businessmen rush by
on cell phones. women
in nice dresses.

i remember when i wore nice
dresses.

someone drops coins in front of me.
i scramble for them—maybe i can buy
a breakfast burrito today. maybe
i should save it.

i dig in my trash bag—my life—
for the coins i got last night.
for the first
time in a week, i can afford
breakfast, and i'm happier
than i've been in a while.