Shirt

A silken splurge.
The color of loyalty,
Shade of serenity;
Summer sky blue.
It glides
Over the pouting
Flesh of his arms.
Floats
Into place across
The gassy globe of his belly.
He’s ready.
Sucks in his gut as he
Steps out the door onto
Chestnut Street.
The yellow dust
Of civilization.
Traffic’s savage music, the cruel
Flash of sun stroked metal,
A thousand shuffling feet.
His shirt protects him
From the siege of stares.
From the panting subway grate,
The bony billboard model,
The exhaust.
He feels almost safe;
Bravely, belly first, he meets
The heat-soaked day.