getting away

his language is choppy, limited
he's hard to understand
asking with hampered vocabulary
for a little bread, maybe
some milk ~ 'I've lost work' he shares ...
again ... with russian accent.
'is there coffee, donuts, something for
my kids to eat?'
and I share what we have, eager
that he leave soon.

¿quieren comida? I ask when my
Ameri-english doesn't work
¿cuantas personas? I wonder aloud
7 people + 5 gets an extra bag
they leave thankful, and they leave
quickly, to my relief.

pushed down by the edges of life even
before the car wreck,
he can't help but to work the angles -
he has to con me, even
when I offer a free room for the night.
is it a free offer,
or just an offer to free myself from
his overbearing insistence
on getting as much as he thinks he can,
no longer considering his need?

shooing out the russian
sending the mexican moms away quickly
getting the con man out of my
personal space right now

am I trying to escape from Jesus?