On my way to work
a little girl leans
on her father
on a brick wall
by the bus stop

I pass a stranger
who is not a stranger
our commutes cross paths
most days

On his bike he waves
though intersections loom

When days pass
without him I worry
I should have shouted
Hello
how are you?

Two girls partake in mediation at school
they fought one brought a knife to school
Both cry about fathers lost
drugs
alcohol
abandonment

They are sorry
they never knew
what the other
was going through

A new woman appears on our route
She does not yet say hello
but I think about her too

and all the things unsaid
all the new kids at school

What is sturdy?
And for whom?