usually the afflicted disabled
handicapped attracted him
being the eldest of nine kids forced
his handhe couldnt help being a big brother he excelled at it must have been a born
caregiver
walking into the supermarket parking
lot off main street he saw a person perched in a wheelchair beside a curbed island
near the crosswalk which lead to the markets threshold
traffic slowed as it neared them
they did not roll forward
the hesitating cars then cautiously
proceeded across the angled yellowpainted crosswalk
his first thought was they needed
helpwere possibly waiting on their attendant it was odd to see them solo
he quickened his pace needed to quell his and traffics apparent
discomfort
their cap barely showed above the
back of the wheelchair from between the
wheels he could see their feet turned awkwardly on the rests
more cars rolledup passed gibberishly confounded
closing to within fifteen meterscontinually
looking for someone who might be their aide he pulled upstep stammered stopped an enormous plume of vapesmoke
roiled into the air above them
they began puffing like a little locomotive
The
Little Engine That Could
Whellshit God helps those who help themselves
Aesop mused alike in his fable Hercules and the Wagoner or Hercules and
the Carter “Put your shoulder to the
wheel . . . urge on your horses. Do you really think you can move the wagon by
simply looking at it and whining . . . ? Hercules really he spoke of himself in third person ill-eism ill-eist Jesus will not help unless you make some effort to
help yourself.”
from his deadstop he coursecorrected
angled across the traffic lane passing to their left at two carwidths difference she
did not look well worse with the vape pen stuck in her puss
from there he called loudly to
her Maam are you in need of help
she heard him
she feigned she didnt
he always kept his eyes on the
belly button didnt fall for head fakes
her belly button didnt answerdidnt
say
she wasnt helping herself
he wouldnt either
that grated him
collected his items leaving the market she was
not there
had she smoked cigarettes butts
would have verified her existence
now
absencegone he decided to believe his
eyes despite their inconsistencies trickery
they would have had to work very hardOvertimeImaginatively
to summons a gnarled gnome vaping in a wheelchair at a crosswalk
suntime, Thursday,
9 6. 22
1119, Monday,
13 6. 22