5 or 6 days a week 
i go to my area in the warehouse
sit or stand amongst the loud, dirty machinery
and listen to people speak
       	did you see that new lexus suv
	girl, my husband wants sex everyday
	look at ann with those raggedy shoes on
	baby, can't nobody lick you down like me
        i know you didn't get those twigs in your head
	the supervisor thinks she's so fly
	all of my friends make over $10 an hour
	forget her white ass, help me instead
	i'll have that fool giving me his check
	i'm getting my drink on tonight
	you ain't nobody, so shut-up
	if he ain't making no money, he can forget it
i ain't doing that mess
that dyke looks just like a man
did you see that old car will drives
if  you give me a try, you'll just love my sex
so, the talk goes on and on
and when i'm not tuned out
i hear all these things 
and so much more
i found my soul weighing heavy 
from all of this junk
junk words like food
empty words like calories
it was actually on a tuesday
i was lacking nourishment 
fat from indulging in idle talk
so i took a day off
and cleaned my system out with
poems and essays from a soprano sky
poems of love from nikki
and writings from various black writers
some who continue to shout hello
some goodbye
as each word filled my mind
my taste buds did a dance
as if i was having my first home-cooked meal
after months of the fast cooked kind
as each word filled my soul
my body turned from stone to a silken fluid
eagerly receiving the lyrical strokes
from the peak of my twigs to my foundation's sole
sometime, during my day of cleansing
a final act occurred
that took the last bit of toxins from me
tears flowed in a continuous stream
blending into my silken state
as they ran from my left eye
signifying the purification of me