A few fools of mine

[TIL #7] On five humans adrift in the streets of the big city

Tales of Ink and Lights are short stories and poems told in a combination of words (the ink) and photographs (the light). Like the guitar and the voice in a folk song, text and pictures work together to bring you the story.

a few fools of mine

we see them in the street

sometimes they will try and speak

to us

try and ask something

drifters

homeless

hopeless and in certain cases most assuredly lost

humans just like us

1.

he is but a fool 
he will never contribute anything useful to society 
and he is drunk 

but a joyful drunkard he is 
and he is being a clown

the busker sings 
the drunkard dances 
he staggers and can’t remember the lyrics 
but he’s got the spectators laughing
people are stopping to watch and they are joining in his dance 
and now the crowd is singing along 
the fool has turned the street into a good place 

the idiot 
he’s changed the world a little bit 


which probably is more 
than can be said of you or i 


although we sure have better manners 

2.

i would have preferred not to see 
but now that i have i can not look away

it is neither my fault nor is it yours that this black bird lies at our feet 
unmoving and never to flap a wing again 

slowly descending from a high 
heading home after a night that ended at 3:14 on that thursday afternoon 
a tall thin man with eyes made up with thick dark lines
spoke theatrically of a dead pigeon in the gutter 

there is he lamented nothing we can do
i did not even know that bird 
he added after a short silence 

willingly or not he was doing a good act 
and he was funny to the point of irreverence 

for i’m not sure he truly saw 
the dark beauty of the dead bird 

3.

there was a man like a scarecrow 
thin he was in dirty rags 
and being danced by the wind like a reed 

he wore a face of desperation and he scared off all passers-by he tried to talk to 

please the homeless man asked 
please just see me 
he cried 
won’t you people please just say hello to me 

hello i said when i was closer 
and he calmed down 
reassured that he was not 
invisible 

4.

he wanted to read the future in the palm of my hand
said he was from India 
and knew of things divine that only they know of 

he spoke of my aura
and of blessings he could hear it call 
he promised
happiness and prosperity would come into my life very soon 
sooner even if i slipped him some money 

it was slightly too obvious that he was practising a routine
a clumsy magician really 

i gave him a few coins
wished him luck
and walked on

strangely happy that i was now heading towards a beautiful future 

5.

that morning i was very much wishing to do good
and desperately i was rifling through my pockets and my bag searching for change
for the homeless old man

it made me sad that i had nothing to give
i apologised to him 

he smiled with warmth
told me not to worry and to have a good day 

and actually
i had a very good day 

that day 

---

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