Garbage Collector Poem by Nassy Fesharaki

Garbage collector

This is my second day
Soon will be on my way
I repeat what I heard:
"On one side keep bricks
Other side go the rest."

"Rest" gives me a heart ache!

The wood in many forms and their shapes
Large is size, long, flat, thin and thick.

With them some carpenters
The simple shop owners
Could run life for a year
That is just with one bin!

In same bin
Paint in cans with lids on
All virgins and untouched; many kinds
And bottles with tops on
And clothes, shirts to pants, underwear
They must tell stories
The clothes on site, camp?
They must be, I believe
Belonging to Tourists
Visitors, students; all from Brazil
Coming for something else but ending in abuse; cheap labour
Poverty, corruption that sure have deprived them
Of living normal life, are happy for money.

No building rises tall unless on poor's blood.
But worse are what I see in buildings
Foundations and bases
Roofs and walls to basements and ceilings
Are ignored as are the safety of workers.

All are inhumane…
Where has gone our conscious?