I was on the side walk,

and my shoelace came undone.

I bent to pull the pieces of string back together,

just as and a red car went by.

And it threw dirty water up across my right leg and arm.

Shit! Looking around, I watched my offense fly against the hard metal,

and slowly absorb it’s way past paint, plastic, and steel.

As I turned back to my forgotten shoe a worm caught my eye.

It was curled near my foot, dead, dried into the concrete.