Naomi Shihab Nye offers readers an alternative to the cruel ways of the world in her poem “Shoulders,” using the ordinary image of a father carrying his sleeping son across a busy street to underscore the importance of kindness in everyday society. The speaker of the poem observes “a man cross[ing] the street in rain” (Line 1), describing his movements as cautious and precise. The man steps “gently, looking two times north and south” (Line 2) before walking into the road “because his son is asleep on his shoulder” (Line 3). The man makes sure that “no car [splashes] him” (Line 4), or “drive[s] too near” (Line 5) to the child, protecting his son from the outside forces that do not have his well-being in mind. The speaker is startled by this small act of care and generosity, describing an otherwise mundane action in great detail, and therefore exposing the lack of altruism present in everyday, human interactions (see: Themes).

The speaker describes the sleeping child as “the world’s most sensitive cargo” (Line 6), exaggerating this notion by noting that he is “not marked / Nowhere does his jacket say FRAGILE, / HANDLE WITH CARE” (Lines 7-9).