The woman wears her coat
buttoned close to her neck
while her purse dangles
from her left hand
waiting for someone
to pass by close enough
to whack with its weight.
Rain continues to fall
outside the sheltered eave,
below the granite stairs,
onto the parking lot
where the lone pedestrian
strolls with her blue umbrella.
The woman’s purse swings
in pendulum rhythm
to rain drops,
to footsteps
splattering away.