Close the blinds

He watches as the blind descends, shutting out the street
The light claws at the dark fabric, noise hurls itself at the window
But falls back senseless and fluttering
Where footsteps grind away at the ground
Shouting children pull at grim mother's hands
Delighting in the glint of a plane high in the blue
Tracing its misty web that burns at noon
Screaming at the cruel-faced clown which leers from a toyshop window
Banging its clockwork drum in time to the pulse of life
Only a slither of light now
Mocking fairground music capers and jigs with the footsteps
Tramp blinks back a tear as the street tips to one side
And the clown bursts through the window
And tumbles down a manhole
With a soft click the whitewashed room is dark
A nurse smiles, and he breathes and says goodbye