---

 

This writing was accepted for publication in the 108 page perfect-bound ISSN# / ISBN# issue/book “In Plain View” Down in the Dirt, v195 (the 5/22 Issue) Order the paperback book:

Order this writing that appears in the one-of-a-kind anthology The Final Frontier the Down in the Dirt May-August 2022 issues collection book		get the 420 page May-August 2022 Down in the Dirt 6" x 9" ISBN# perfect-bound paperback book:

What We Throw Away

Gil Hoy

On Wednesdays, I take my trash
down to the curb. There’s a blue bin
for recyclables, a black bin
for regular trash, and a brown bin
for yard waste.

One of my neighbors
stays inside most of the time.
He’s drinking again. There are three
or four empty wine or bourbon bottles
in his blue bin every week.

An acquaintance living on the next street
over is an accountant. His blue bin
is filled with shredded tax schedules,
financial statements and old tax returns.
By the time April 15 comes around,
he has three blue bins that are overflowing.

Our richest neighbor has a large lot
with three birch trees next to his driveway.
His brown bin is filled with grass the yard boy
cut and birch tree branches that once
encroached on his driveway.

His shiny Mercedes can now
get in and out again without a scratch.
His yard is always neat, tidy
and carefully manicured. He likes
to show off for all his neighbors.

You can tell a lot about a man
from the contents of his trash.

A divorcee living a few houses
down worries about getting old.
Her black bin holds odds and ends
from products promising
to make her gray hair brown again
and remove the wrinkles from her face.

She’s put on weight since her husband
left her for a younger woman
a few years ago. This week, there are
four empty pizza boxes in her black bin.

Another neighbor of mine now buys
as much as she can online. She obsesses
about COVID. Her son got sick a year ago,
was in intensive care and then died.
Her blue bin is filled with broken down
cardboard boxes every week.

You can tell a lot about a woman
from the contents of her trash.

A house up the road has two recyclable bins
that are always full. The black bin never has
much trash at all. The owner works for a company
that reduces greenhouse gases and makes clean water.
He attends political events most nights
and is always talking about climate change.

A widow who lives up the street recently passed.
Our town will pick up your bins when you no longer
need them. Her blue, black and brown bins are empty
and sitting in front of her house ready for pickup.

You can tell a lot about people
from the trash they don’t have.

Another one of my neighbors doesn’t play
by the rules. He puts his trash out early
most weeks. And then he’s fined by our town.
He was arrested a while back for stealing money
from his clients and had to spend a few years
away from his family.

You can tell a lot about a person
from how they handle their trash.

And as for me, my trash is not
what it used to be. My wife
passed away suddenly and the kids
have all grown up and moved away.
I don’t talk with them much anymore.
I haven’t seen them in a few years.

I miss the deflated balloons from birthday parties
and worn out hockey skates that used to be
in my black bin. And the leaves in my yard waste
bin when I could sometimes get the boys
to rake. I miss my wife’s fancy shampoo bottles
I used to have in my blue bin.

On a good week, when I’m eating well, my bins
may be as much as a quarter full. But most weeks,
they’re as empty as an old man’s broken heart.

You can tell a lot about a man
from what’s in and not in his trash.

Copyright of written pieces remain with the author, who has allowed it to be shown through Scars Publications and Design.Web site © Scars Publications and Design. All rights reserved. No material may be reprinted without express permission from the author.

Problems with this page? Then deal with it...