As they stand there
In skimpy clothes
Ignoring the letching
The leering
Calling to the lonely
The lost the sad
The desperate
The depraved
Are you looking
For a date
A good time
Always in danger
Taking the risk
To earn the
Money for the next fix
The next meal
The babies clothes
No one asks their
Stories

The voices speak
Some are not friends
I sometimes wonder
When is the end
I go to sleep
Awake each morning
To the clamour
Of them returning
Never knowing silence
Can I ever know peace

The fight has gone
I have no energy
To even move is effort
I’m overcome with lethargy

Work is hard and long
It drains the life out of me
When I finish for the day
By darkness I am claimed

Arms and legs are dragging
My head throbs aching
Is there an end to this grind
The light I cannot see

Smiling on the outside
No one sees the woe
Laughing all day long
How do I even see it through
The pain is my companion
It is with me constantly
The drugs dull all the symptoms
But it wins eventually
So I laugh and smile and joke along
Making light of situations
Hiding all the pain I’m suffering
Taking my day with patience
Swallow the pills to **** the pain
And plod my path to relief

One, two, three, four,
We all have them
Count once more
Two arms, legs,
Hands, feet,
So we can run, wave, greet
Not all are lucky
Some have one lost
Or even two or three
Lost in war
Born with a disability
So when you see a limbless person
Don’t look down upon them
Help them if they need
Embrace their stories
See the people

Where or why the tears flow
I have no control
They seem to come from nowhere
Mostly when I am alone
Many people stand around me
Not seeing all my pain
I want to scream aloud
Although it would be done in vain
My ailments are invisible
You cannot see what’s wrong
And every day I wonder
Can I keep on being strong

Bone weary, dog tired
Beaten, hanging, frazzled, fried
Knackered, shattered
Whacked or battered
This is how we live

The work is long
The time is short
No margin for things going wrong
They pay as little as they can
And take the lives of many

Generations old and new
Are worked so hard
As to be abused
Thrown away when thoroughly used
Replaced with one much younger