Farm Workers’ Quarters
pre-dawn colours, crêpe sky.
daybreak unfurls, edges out sleep.
empty thermos, chai on the propane stove,
jars of spices, crude shelves, a bucket of flour
next to the mattress on the floor. a rope
across this one-room life sagging with
drying clothes, dignity. through thin walls,
rustle of others in rooms next door.
sour stench of rotten berries. small life,
readying for another day in the fields.