A Song for Her

There is a man on my street

Who gazes at her as she passes

His eyes are sharp, biting,

Cold talons that long to pry into

Where they do not belong.

She walks past without a sound,

For anything else would be unbefitting.

She smiles and keeps her head down

And tries to forget.

But I see the shaking in her hands

And the hotness in her face

And the cracking in her soul

As she walks alone through the crowded streets.

I believe in her.

I believe in her strength

And her courage

And her sheer power of will

And I know that one day that man will attack her again with his eyes

And she will fight back with her words, biting like bullets

And his looks that were once so deeply cutting

Will become dull and broken knives in a gunfight.