Simple Gratitude for Simple Gifts
I.
He is old
uses a cane
bent over and slow
takes all he has to climb into the city bus
Takes the only seat left
Others fill the aisle—hanging from the loops
The bus jerks forward
He searches each pocket, jacket, pants, and shirt
His nose is running, now dripping—
but nothing to wipe it
Across the crowded aisle, I reach into my pocket
where I always carry napkins
I slide some toward him
across the aisle
between the legs of standers
He takes the napkins
wipes his nose—never looks my way
I know he's grateful
if a bit ashamed - I know because I've been there.
II.
How she managed two shopping carts
we do not know
She loads the rear of her SUV
with food and drinks
Stuffs her small child in his car seat
Ready to go?
_ No! _
Two carts to return with:
Child waiting. Car unlocked. Groceries piled.
My wife sees her predicament
"I’ll take your carts back."
"Oh, thank you. Thank you!"
Relief
As she drives away,
she rolls down her window:
"Oh, thank you. Thank you!"
III.
She is hanging upside down
inside the window screen
She looks puzzled, trapped, chagrined—
her ET-like eyes
overwhelming her small head
bobbing on her long, slender, mint-green body
I’m certain she is a she—
her regal head contentedly nodding,
despite her obvious predicament
I slip a cupped white paper under her
The queen slowly steps forward
entering her carriage
“Welcome Madame.”
She is deferential to her new footman
I escort her outside
where she slowly exits her carriage
onto an hydrangea leaf
She pauses as she turns
and with the slightest nod of her head
she acknowledges her new footman.
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The Rev. Dr. Benjamin Pratt is a noted expert on compassionate care and is the author of _ Guide for Caregivers _.