The Silenced Poem by chris schwartz

I have a heart,
Made for man.
Those who haven't experienced it
Surely can't understand.
I see the homeless,
And their eyes beg to me
I want to give them a fortune
But a twenty is all that
Is afforded by me.
My heart bleeds in silence
For the child
Who has lost
A parent, a sibling,
A grandfather, or brother.
As humans,
If we haven't experienced
The grief of others
We do not know;
We close our eyes
To those whose lives
Have been uncontrollably shattered
Through no means of their own.
I have a heart.
I still wonder
About the man
Who visited me each night
At the convenience store.
He pulledpennies
From his pocket
That took most of the day
For him to earn.
He smelled of alcohol,
Though, I never judged him.
He too, had a story to tell.
We all get along,
As best we can.
Life is hard, and harsh,
We don't always understand.
But to see into others,
As though you could, maybe
Be them,
Is to feel compassion, grief, and worry
And love for each of them.
I have a heart.