At the playground . . .

Monday we had a family picnic over by the playground -- just me, my wife, two sons, and three dogs, all evacuated from the house to make room for a realtor and a potential buyer. Soon all but the younger son and I had left for home. He played with kids on the playground, and I watched. And pretty soon I saw something:

At the Playground

At the playground's edge I sit,
Watch the children as they laugh
And play, excited, eager, full of life, but they
Don't seem to notice me at all.
With small, quick eyes I watch
To see the sandwich laid aside, potato chips
Abandoned in the thrill of play--
I slink up now, and take one for my own,
Drag it swiftly to a tiny hole,
My den beneath the swings,
Where young and hungry mouths await.