There have been times in life
That I've been more than hungry
I've never really been homeless
But I have lived right next door
I've been known to turn back on the hiway
Driving back for a lost blanket, a gas can
A ice chest or two and not that long ago
A new ,plastic wrapped  DBL.quilted ...
........Queen size mattress  " SCORE !"

I'm happy with simple things in life
A  couple of rooms, a good roof over head
A mind capable of creative, and / or critical thinking
And enough food each day so my dogs are fed
Enough work to keep the plates all spinning
And the energy to see that they do ,okay I do break a few
Acquaintances seen every once in a while who will smile
Maybe talk a while , and a friend or two that are really true blue

So my whole life I've gotten up each day to do what it takes
Filling one pocket with hope ,another with happy thoughts
A shopping list in the third in case I can pick something up
The 4th for any money I might make staving off the have nots
Some days the list gets a few items marked off beyond basics
Other days I drag in with a heavier list than I had carried off
Due to the whims of a pickup truck thats as old as I am
That caught some kind of bug in town, and now has a cough

But that's not the worst of what can be thrown at  me
And this first half of 2017 I find days when I've come in devoid
Of money or items marked from the list and not a single happy thought
But there are those depths not to be accepted, and I alway avoid
Succumbing to...every fiber of my being insisting and resisting
As my alarm bells start ringing a warning to me as I'm clinging to the rope
Just how close I had been to losing grip and letting myself slip
Before remembering all pockets are not empty ,never have been or ever will be - personal or political - empty of hope.