How like an old man. Midstride, dead,
He topples
His face as mottled
As a butterfly's wing.
Be distracted as the pavements sing
For the rain
Plays the slatted drain
Like a xylophone.
Consider the skin tone
Now brittle as chalk,
The stamp of his walk
From his muscles erased
Like a lyric unphrased.
Note the dumb head
Note the wedding ring
As the unknown dully meets the unknown.