A poem
By Jack Crimmins
there’s a man with a blanket on
standing at Round Barn Park
in Santa Rosa’s historic West End
head to toe covered and his
shopping cart is laden down
with tarps and assorted bags
overflowing really he’s
got a ton of stuff there’s
a freeze warning here
in California though
people in the East
would laugh wishing
the temperature would
get as high as freezing
everything’s relative and
somehow at this time
of year we’re all related
there’s a man with a blanket on
and C.’s working
at the crisis unit
a woman who is psychotic
hearing voices and gravely disoriented
is saying she needs help so C. says to her
someone will be right with you
it’s really busy everyone’s working
very hard and the woman says
hey, I talk to all the dead
who has the harder job
and C. says well
I guess you do
I’ll help you directly now
there’s a man with a blanket on
at Round Barn Park
we’re all trying to keep warm
trying to keep the cold away
to do our work and notice
we’re all connected
right here north of San Francisco
and at the chilly beginning of a new year
there’s a man with a blanket on
