An oldman in a room of oldmen head lowered silent mourning his failures All the oldmen ashamed before each other heads lowered. Each mourning their failures Each is a judge of the other All are ashamed at a city they half built at sections left undone for standing in the shadows of doorways eyeing a street unexplored
Irwin R. Shaw - October 4th 1988
An oldman
in a room of oldmen
head lowered
silent
mourning his failures
All the oldmen
ashamed before each other
heads lowered. Each
mourning their failures
Each is a judge of the other
All are ashamed
at a city they half built
at sections left undone
for standing in the shadows
of doorways
eyeing a street unexplored