Pittsburgh 2

now the city feels familiar, at least

in parts, the roads I walk on are friendly

like the lady in uniform who holds up the

traffic every time to let me cross

from one side of Federal Street to other.

the effusive salesman at Radio Shack

wants to sell me a service plan with the

recorder... he looks crestfallen when I tell him

the guarantees don’t work in the world he’s
not familiar with; I am only visiting after all.

I go to Starbucks and the cheerful waitress 
wants to know whether I had a good day...
buoyed by the greeting, I nurse a large coffee
for an hour sitting on a high stool and staring
at the world outside...  a woman passes by,
her shoulders hunched, she’s crying softly at
accumulated losses and unanswered questions.

but it is the young school boy, as old as my son

who catches my attention; he dances with abandon

to the delight of the three girls who surround him

two of his companions start to swirl too, keeping

pace with the frenzied beat of his tapping feet, but

one hangs behind and looks wistfully at the 

moving apparitions on a cold windy afternoon.

She is the one who doesn’t belong

She could be from any part of the world

She has been told she is plain.

Vijay Nair