The Library.

The Library.

It is a haven

An enclave

Hidden in full view

And ignored,

By most.

The tide flows on,

Passing over

And around it,

Whilst

Humanity screams,

Bellows with rage.

Empty cans

And fast food wrappers

Thrown in the air

As often as tantrums

At a Children party.

Occasionally,

People stumble

Through the open door,

Drinkers in need of

A moment out

Of the wind.

Somewhere to sit

And sleep,

Or talk with friends

They met in a literacy class.

A grey old ghost sits

In front of a computer,

Rehearsing

The words he

Would say if he

Could be connected

On skype.

And at the counter,

Signing in,

Being issued

With an identification card,

Somebody joked

They had not

Been a member

Since they were at school.

Apparently

They always bought books

But may be the library

Was worth a look

On a cold day

In early May.

In the corner

A philosopher

Mused over the daily news

Another political hash

He should give it a bash,

Instead,

He dished out homilies

And bottom of the bottle wisdom

For the price of a can.

If he could get away with it

Before the assistant

Shushed him up

And threatened

To have him removed.

She said he was disturbing

The job seekers,

As they surfed the web

Looking for their

Rainbows end.

A buttoned up type

In a worn,

Pin stripped suit

And dirty shirt

Sucked on his teeth,

And tried really

Hard not to

Touch anything.

Nobody really knew

What lay behind

His cruel, laconic quips

And tightly pursed lips.

But it was plain

He thought he was the better man

For his University degree,

And long pedigree of working,

Until he was made

Redundant.

His marriage failed,

Lost his home to a fire

And almost got himself jailed

For arson.

Nobody mentioned it

But it was always there

Hanging around,

In the background.

Another bad smell,

Poor house air,

For people with nowhere

To sit and just read,

Or to

Catch up with friends

When they were short

Of a shilling,

Or they needed it

For another drink.

After a precious moment spent

In relative peace

And quiet

Trying to read, learn

And think.