Hunger Bites

His worn out soles drag ponderously on the scabrous floor. He holds a sign in his trembling wrinkled hands which is shredded on its upper right. People pass by him; none of them bother to look at his long bearded weary face. His hand drops devastatingly along with the sign. It now trails behind him.

He follows the road; wherever it may lead for maybe it will break him out of his misfortune. He wanders on the most familiar road and his body steeps in front of the most familiar smell. He holds his head up sighing. His teary eyes stare at the rubbish cart and his hand grips. The rhythm of his footsteps slows down while he makes his way towards it.

 The streets are crowded with Louboutin heels and Rolex watches and the road is flooded with cars and their overwhelming noises. He presses his hand on his ear, breathes heavily and halts. He looks around in desperation at the lively world around him then looks back at that miserable cart which seems to be his only hope. A scar that reveals on his darkened hand, right under the sleeve, gives up quite a bit of his past. It seems as a burn scar. He pulls his sleeves back down, puts aside the sign and reaches inside the filthy cart.  It reeks but still he reaches for it. He searches thoroughly.

After a while, he comes up with a bag full of leftovers, a dozen of flies and a look of relief on his face. He grabs the bag tight, leans down and holds his sign. The old man looks up at the clear blue sky and gazes in its clarity, its holiness. He walks slowly towards the corner where he had kept his old brown blanket. He sits down and wraps himself with the pierced piece of fabric. He takes a deep breath and inhales the sweet scent of freshly baked bread from the fancy bakery just across the street. He opens his cherished bag and spreads the reeking goods on the sidewalk in front of him; a rotten apple, half a loaf of bread and a box filled with fries untouched. He chooses the apple to consume first and puts the other two back in the bag.  Meanwhile the sign, meant to reach out to those refusing to see the other side of their shallow world, lays facedown.