Watching silhouettes against a darkening sky
Long past sunset workers still up on the sloped roof
Seen as we walk past on the street below
With the car headlights already on
None of them have safety harnesses
And still they rush to get more done
When one misstep means sudden death
Tired at the end of a very long day
They are replacing the tiles on the roof
Damaged by the last hurricane here
Doing every building in the complex
A large crew we see every day
Starting very early and working quite late
With a half hour break after five hours
To eat and rest before five or six hours more
Getting up to do it again six days a week
Moving quickly nonstop working together
Bending lifting carrying climbing hour after hour
Sometimes running across the roof fearlessly
We look on them with respect and concern
Admiring their good humor hearing them laugh
Having fun however they can it seems to me
Hearing the nail gun staccato like playing a drum
But I see them lie down exhausted at lunch
They are immigrants doing the hardest work
Arriving here not knowing the language
Consigned to manual labor and low pay
Who deserve our thanks and a better life
