Andrena Zawinski: Twilit Sonnet

In twilight’s dusky backstreets and muted alleys,

the dispossessed huddle for the evening

in boxes or sleeping bags, under freeways,

at doorways, inside storage bins. They retreat

to the bleak hum at the margins of byways

some babbling narratives or needling about,

others planning a way out, a way away,

wandering through fleeting corners of comfort.

Just one more night, like sparrows and pigeons,

they stake their place, tucking into themselves,

roosting deep into nooks along city ledges,

inside cavities of trees. Once sheltered,

their public pieces of darkened parcels

eclipse beneath the wayward heavens.

.

Copyright 2017 Andrena Zawinski. From her collection Landings published by Kelsay Books.