Independence Day The sun was friendly Picking out the three native American Indians--- Homeless, unshaven Sitting on the sidewalk Outside Zupan’s Wolfing down fried drumsticks For lunch Their faces so filthy I couldn’t see their eyes Behind the locks Of dirty hair They were indifferent To the well-fed, well-trimmed Citizens passing by Without looking At them He who had the longest hair Raised his head and eyes To beg from time to time And when they done eating They threw the bones Onto the street It was said that When the natives first saw White people approaching From the sea They thought their eyes Have betrayed them For they had never seen anything Called ‘ships’ I know my eyes Betray me too, sometimes Like now Through the floating flags Fleeting automobiles And the brass band playing Star-Spangled Banner A black crow From nowhere Dashed down & picked up The chicken bones And the street in front of The three men was clean again ::july '05