Happy New Year from my Indian brethren
and from the snaps at the liquor store,
while the food abounds and the festival of lights
reminds us to be humble and high,
celebrated every autumn in the northern hemisphere.
life has brought me here with new friends
Hindus, Jains, Sikhs and some Buddhists,
and this whiteboy, who considers himself lucky,
learning about how light can overcome darkness,
knowledge over ignorance, good over evil,
hope over despair.
I learned how to survive on the streets,
and I fell in love in New York City,
but it is this dinner that I sit and listen,
letting the harvest smiles teach me more than time.