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By Jack Joseph Smith

Street signs, possibly you look at faces that are acceptable, but all the while don't appeare natural to you You say this world is not for friendship And you are here telling me about love, and I don't believe that I have an above average intellance just because I am the best around the corner girl, and I knew there wasn't even a wind when her skirt blew,, making it till the morning the river was suddenly smooth; something to do with nature changing shifts like men used to do I did not find anything searching for her But I continued the wal and found alot, about others, that I never knew; and the ones who do the damage don't look. over their sholder

Original Scan

Page 121

AI Interpretation

GPT

Street signs, acceptable faces, false talk of friendship and love, and a fruitless search for her lead instead to a harsher knowledge of how damage is done by people who never look back.

The poem distrusts surfaces from the start, especially faces that pass social standards without ever seeming natural. The smooth river and the skirt blowing without wind suggest a world where appearances keep happening without the causes one expects. What the speaker learns by continuing the walk is not where she is, but how other people move through the world without remorse.


Claude

Street signs that don't appear natural, the world not for friendship line. The ones who do the damage don't look over their shoulder.