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Passers-by

by Carl Sandburg, 1916

Passers-by,
 Out of your many faces
 Flash memories to me
 Now at the day end
 Away from the sidewalks
 Where your shoe soles traveled
 And your voices rose and blent
 To form the city’s afternoon roar
 Hindering an old silence.

 Passers-by,
 I remember lean ones among you,
 Throats in the clutch of a hope,
 Lips written over with strivings,
 Mouths that kiss only for love.
 Records of great wishes slept with,
     Held long
 And prayed and toiled for..

     Yes,
 Written on
 Your mouths
 And your throats
 I read them
 When you passed by.

Published in Chicago Poems
Tags: body

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