You Can Tell A lot About a Man...

they say, you can tell a lot about a man by
the state of his front yard.
how often he tends to it,
what he keeps in it,
and how tall his fence is.

they used to say, you can tell a lot about a man
by the condition of the shoes he's wearing.

these days though, shoes don't mean anything.
no. it's all about the front yard.

i think you can tell a lot about a man
by the items he selects at a buffet
and whether or not he eats everything on his plate
before returning for more (if he even does).

but that's not the industry standard in the "you can tell a lot about a man" system.
no.  right now, it's all about the front yard. 

but what if you don't give a shit about front yards
and the only thing you care about is crocheting sweaters?

can you still tell a lot about a man by his front yard?
what if he just pays someone else to groom the damn thing?
what if he lives in New York City and doesn't have a front yard?
can you tell a lot about a man by his bird shit covered cement stoop?

perhaps we need another form of measurement.

perhaps it's time we
tell a lot about a man
by how often he donates his time
to concerns beyond his own
self-serving interests.