Eggs

I saw a thin sallow man with a sign,
"NOT THIS SKINNY BY CHOICE",
On my way to the grocer.
Maybe if the eggs had been cheaper,
I would have wished him better than death.
Now I walk on by
His belongings in the gutter.

My neighbor's brother's family lives in their car,
Packed in the driveway, humming at midnight
Just to keep them warm.
Maybe if the eggs had been cheaper,
I wouldn't have called DHS.
Now I walk on by
An empty driveway, an empty house.

My sister-in-law has an auto-immune disorder.
COVID nearly killed her, a few times over.
She asks me to wear a mask inside.
Maybe if the eggs had been cheaper,
I wouldn't have coughed on her.
Now I walk on by
My ex-wife's crying family.

Maybe if the eggs had been cheaper,
I would have cared that the kids in cages
Never got out.
I would have cared that the tariffs
Never ended.
I would have cared that genocides
Were always state policy.
Maybe if the eggs had been cheaper,
I wouldn't have chosen cruelty
So enthusiastically,
But I doubt it.
I just walk on by,
Like I always did.