Hail Mary


I took a boat to an unfamiliar

street. Looking out, I

began to sing Ave Maria,

the music not the words.

I derived pleasure from the sounds

in the world and my own.

I saw a mother and her daughter

waiting for a light to change. I hoped my voice

would reach them and from it

they would find hope. They did not

turn, which was no surprise,

though a bullet broke the air in song.

Take pity on us who live in despair.

Be for us that place we yearn for.