Picture your grandmother holding her purse to her side with both hands. On a street full / of traffic, horns.  Beggars and bottles on the sidewalk.  She tells you not to stop at the coo / of each pigeon. That you’re going to miss the bus. 

Picture the dog again shifting between cars and buses, dodging. That dog. Remember?  / The one that was chasing pigeons, butterflies, lizards, cars?  The one with the spot on its / nose.  The one without a collar, wandering the streets. That one. It’s still hungry. 

The first time I use spray paint, I’m with Jimmy / Henderson and Rolando Rodriguez. The store / 
Clerk senses that our fingers are ready to pull / A trigger and picks out the colors.  We carry / 
Our ammunition in our backpacks. Jimmy / Wants the first hit to be for revenge: the corner / 
Market that fired his brother for not showing / Up to work. Six times. Rolando wants us / To mark spots where the girls will see them.