apad 9

CCTV mounted on poles,
watching the cars jerking
in and out of lanes at rush
hour and the buses sliding
in and out of stops.

At one point a streetcar pulls
silently into a stop, the signs
proclaiming that entry is forbidden.
And so, unlike cars and buses,
it moves off just as silent
and with only the operators
aboard.

Silent,sterile, passing the
couple who have just moved
into range of the CCTV
and each other's arms.