a lonely mother
shops at the Tesco down the road
she holds two cold babies
nothing in the shopping trolley
they hold their shaking hands out
"please?"
I am ashamed
I have no money
I beg for their forgiveness
"I am truly sorry"
they look at their feet
all they wanted was some food
a starving dog
that doesn't resemble a dog anymore
wanders past me
life is etched into his grey fur
his blind eyes, his hurt paws
you can see his ribs
they stick out like a thorn
I pet his head
his tail wags
"I am truly sorry"
he wanders off
and dies down a dark alleyway
he only wanted a good nap
a boy
no older than me
stands on the bridge
looking at the train tracks beneath him
"Stop!"
he looks up
you can see his hollowness
his gloominess
his eyes are dark
he has no more life
"I am truly sorry!"
I cry as he cries
He takes a breath
He has soft hands
and jumps
the ambulance too late
he only wanted a good life
a young girl
stares at me as I walk through the park
tired tears stain her satin skin
bruises along her arm
hunger clawing at her charm
she doesn't smile, she doesn't speak
but I know what she says
I rush over
I try to help
But her father hits me back
"I am truly sorry"
I shout to her
I beg the police
to fight back
but its no use
there's too many like her
all she wanted was true love
a man who lost his mother
cries outside the hospital
where she lays cold in her bed
after 5 years of fighting cancer
his grief pours onto the pavement
and I must console him
or I will be unhappy
"I am truly sorry"
I hold him
this stranger
whose emotion clings to me
he wails into my shoulder
I clutch him tight
I cry
all he wanted was his mother
A family
no home
no money
they have different skin
than to the landlord
who charged them three times as much as his other tenants
they beg him at his door
he turns them away
They weep
I see
The injustice,
I shout at the landlord
he turns me away and threatens to tattle
I turn to the hungry family
"I am truly sorry"
All they wanted was a warm home
a child sits on the curb
they seem to be lost
they are crying
I bend down to them
a kind face
"are you ok?"
they frown and wail
they shiver and pale
my face falls
I ask about their mom
and I ask do you know where they are?
and they shake their head left to right
a hard no
"I am truly sorry"
I help them
But they don't find their parents
Abandoned on the street
Who could do such a thing?
All they wanted was a loving parent
At night
you're heart aches
thinking about the sorry's you've made
do they console?
do they help?
the hunger
the death
the empathy courses through your depths
you are moved
you are kept
you are the friend
to the dead