Curtains by Sandra Cisneros

Curtains (from My Wicked Wicked Ways: Poems)
by Sandra Cisneros

Rich people don't need them.
Poor people tie theirs into fists
or draw them tight as modest brides
up to the neck.

Inside they hide bright walls.
Turquoise or lipstick pink.
Good colors in another country.
Here they can't make you forget

the dinette set that isn't paid for,
floorboards the landlord needs to fix,
raw wood, linoleum roses,
the what you wanted but didn't get.