The Absentee Corner Poem by Susan Lacovara

When I was young, still smitten
With the carnival ride, everyday life
Paraded before my curious eyes
At the busiest intersections,
The overcrowded parking lots,
An unmanageable exit ramp,
Or the entrance to buildings
Where education was to be handed out....
There stood a calmly figure, in fluorescent fatigues,
Arms waving, signalling safe passageway
They hustled and bustled us
From to and fro, single filed, marching
Keeping watch for oncoming traffic
That we might be spared injury
Where, I ask,
Are the crossing guards
For today's lost youth....
Who is there, directing the roads
They are travelling, seemingly alone
Why are they left with no maps
To aid, in guiding, the endless turns
Getting lost along their way
Searching for familiar faces
And places that offer safe haven
Have we turned a blind eye
To the busy streets of youth
Who undoubtedly fall into the subway system
Of feeling invisible
Navigating the unchartered emotions
Without the encouraging love, deserved
And quick, to announce they've strayed the path
Taken the literal turn for the worse
Ventured, if not wandered,
Into neighborhoods no one should enter, alone
They cross against the light
Jaywalking into the darkest places
Any soul would rightfully avoid
With a pocketful of tokens, to nowhere...
Street signs covered, grit and grime
While the heavy metal music
Of the overwhelming streets
Leave them looking for that crossing guard
At the absentee corner