Fly on the Wall

Smug tweed slams the dining car door,

Ordering

Eggs – scrambled

Toast –dry

Bacon – extra crispy

Coffee – very hot, with cream on the side.

The dolly in pink just beams

The same Betty Boop smile everyday

Waiting on the professor

As he boasts his position

At the university and

His thesis on ending world poverty

To all within earshot

As the waitress

Whose intellect would surprise,

Anticipates his every request.

His bearded brilliance ignores

The bent walking stick man

Struggling on the next stool over

With the holey shoes

And tattered pant cuffs

Who stutters his words and

Leaves excessive tips

For the pastel benevolence

Who needs every nickel

To feed scraps to her family

But uses that dough to buy a burger

For the bum in the corner

With the crushed fedora

And shattered essence

Who cries in his coffee

And murmurs to forget

His heroism in the trenches

And the heartless love

Who wouldn’t wait for his return

As Mr. Elbow Patches of Superiority

Haughtily savors his

Bacon – extra crispy

And his coffee - very hot, with cream on the side.