Voices of Poverty by Joel Teron

How can you grasp what you’ve never had to face?

How can you give what you’ve never had to live?

A voice? A voice for who?

A voice for the boy, surviving on two school meals a day.

A voice for the mom, ensuring her kids eat first, come what may.

A voice for the man in Tomkins Square Park, hungry and disarrayed.

A voice for the young man in the shelter, hoping for a bed, dismayed.

These voices, weary, cry out in despair, seeking ears that listen, hearts willing to care.

I lend my voice to let theirs find some rest.

To unveil how poverty touches even the very best.