Men in Black
Men in Black
Black faces
emerge
streaked with sweat
nostrils flared
sucking in fresh air…
The morning light
opens their eyes
white teeth shine
with home going smiles
meant for another day.
Warm water
washes away
the aching night…
clean faces
emerge…
But, inside
in the deep hollows
of their breath
the wages of their labor
grows dark.
It is a life
no one appreciates
but everyone expects.
Tony Sexton
2 thoughts on "Men in Black"
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I love these lines!
“home going smiles” and
“the wages of their labor” where we give more of ourselves than can be accounted in pay.
Thank you!
I also love “home going smiles” — and “in the deep hollows/of their breath”!
Thank you, too, for your footnote on “wages of their labor” — it caught my eye in the best way, and oh how I agree.
This poem is a great teacher. Thank you for your contribution to poetry and poetry in Kentucky. <3