The Homeless Heart Poem by Lonnie Hicks

'I could tell you had a homeless heart, from the start, ' she said 'had been beat down in your life and left somewhere for double dead- road-side in some ravine outside Grimy Town...

I sense these things.' she said.

He said:

'Not far wrong. Now as to you I feel you been dragged through the mud, yourself experiencin' head-scratching hurts and harms, and your skiff is leeward and now adrift.' he said moving a bit closer to her, smelling of diesel, a smell she liked.

'You not far wrong, ' she said.

'And I can see your trust level dip-stick is very low. for men like me.' He said

'Very low.' she said.

'So what can man like me then offer a woman like you? And vici versa.' he said. 'Seems natural for us to powwow and cozy up, nothing carnal you understand, but understanding can come of it.'

'I don't know' she said, 'hurt and hurt added together seems to me just adds up to more pain.'

“Could be, ” he said “You could be right. But then I was always taught to believe in miracles, you? ”


“I was taught' she said 'but never got my fair share of that miracle thing I think.”

“Never too late” he said, “never too late.”

“Yeah maybe” she said, “but I would be dead of boredom waiting on all that and that ain’t enough excitement for me in this life. All my excitements have been gin soaked in wounded pride.”

'How do you go by? ” she said

“They say my name is Rory, but I am not sure.”

'Not sure? Now that is what I call a bad line and a low level of willingness to engage and commit if I ever heard.”

“Didn't say nothing about commit, ” he said.

'Just referring to this here conversation.” She said “What do you want me to give you a name? '

“You can' he said, 'and what name would you choose? '

“Don't know” she said. Maybe 'Drifter' that seems right. What do you think? '

'Ok by me he said as long as you add to 'Mr. Drifter' I got to have my respect since I don’t have my memory anymore.'

“Do tell.' she said and then took a long look at him sideways.
'No memory you say? '. she said.

'Hit on the head and left in a ravine, true.'

Anne took another long look at him and she could see he was telling the truth.
End of Chapter One