The road hiccoughs;

The sidewalk sneers.

Bumpy, never smooth.

It seems to have the very purpose

Of collecting the dirt

That the soles of shoes

Grind into the ground.

Everything about the West side

Has a faintly tinny odor,

A faintly tan color,

That cannot be washed away.

The cars with broken windows,

Plastic wrap in place of glass

And dents in the metal

Are ubiquitous,

One on every corner.

Nothing seems to ever get quite clean,

Not the children,

Not the trailers,

Nor the schools,

Where children don't learn,

Or the trees,

Which stand still,

Never quite green.

Storm clouds gather

Somewhere in the East,

And decide that their time has come.

The thunder roars-

Rain comes pouring down.

Sheets of water splash down,

Filling buckets.

By the time it is through,

The East side sparkles,

Shining with new life,

Bright reds and silvers of cars,

Perfect and pure.

But on the West side,

The rain only stains.

The water that let the East be born again,

Has only caused the dirt to leap up

And become mud.

Nothing can ever be washed away,

Not the dirt, nor the cursing.

The grime remains.

A little girl

Steps out of an old, rusted trailer.

As she opens the door,

A steady stream of water from the ceiling

Is visible.

But the girl does not frown;

Her teardrops do not join

The mud on the ground.

She smiles,

Letting the clean water,

Still raining down from the heavens

Soak into her hair,

Dress,

Mouth

Before it hits the ground.

She twirls,

Her light feet not disturbing

The brown glop below,

And she lights up the neighborhood.

Slowly, the deserted streets are filled,

By children, mothers, fathers,

Sisters, brothers,

Grandmas, Grandpas,

All dancing to the heartbeat

Of the little girl, still smiling.

And suddenly,

The West side smiles, too

And it is clean, sparkling in its own way.

The road still hiccoughs;

The sidewalk still sneers,

A tinny odor

Still haunts the streets,

A faint layer of grime

Following behind.

But inside, the West is happy,

Innocent,

As the community goes out to dance.