in the morning

the women,
after the men have
left for work,
the children
have gone off
to school
come out to the stoops,
the marbled
white slabs
of porch, and sweep.
scrub, scour
the dirt away.
the steps gleam
in the city sun
along the long
street, where each
house shares
a wall.
the women nod,
and say hello
to one another,
speaking in low
whispers
the things
that no one else
will know.