Walking down Garema Place and pull up under a shady tree. Not many people around but from behind and quiet like Russell comes over and says hello little angel. All soft and gentle. Well I'm hardly little and he is tall. Hes dressed like its winter in clothes that are too big for him and its at least 32 degrees. He starts his request for money to buy anti pain medicine and a packet of White Ox. I just said with a happy face and sound "Would you like to have breakfast with me" He tried one more time to get $2 off me and I repeated you can have any breakfast you want. He looked at me and said with a smile " Id like to have breakfast with you".
So over to a an outside dining area we go and sit. The waiter comes with a bottle of water. We do general chit chat about the weather and he tells me hes vegetarian while pouring me my water. This confuses me coz he said he wants bacon and eggs. I asked him can he read? No, he cant. I told him I cant read so well either. Then he bent his head and and showed me where a metal plate is in place on the top of his head. He was rubbing it like it was a baby. I asked if I could touch it and he said yes. I only did that so as to validate him. This is the source of his pain. This is where he gets his dream of being a doctor one day. He askes if he can smoke and I asked what you gunna smoke and he said tailor mades. I said Id prefer you didn't and said have you got any rollys coz I don't mind them. So he gets up to walk and have a smoke and I said nah stay forgetting the smoking laws and he lights up. Waiter comes and takes our order and looks at me quizingly.
Russell askes me if I have change of $20 coz he has a fist full of $2 coins he wants to get rid off. Must be doing alright I'm thinking. Hes got lovely soft green eyes and they are not looking as sleepy as they were when I first saw him.
During the meal he tells me his views on vegetarianism and I ask him if he wants my toast coz I don't eat bread. First he says no and then when I push it to one side says Ill have it. We pass it over using cutlery and he then passes me his favorite which is a hash brown which I eat. All the time talking about different drugs available and his relationship with the coppers which is good. He said they know me and are kind. Hes intelligent and sensitive. Before we finish up he tries to smoke again and the owner asked him not to so he went for a fag after asking me to go for a foot paddle in the fountain with him. I went to pay the bill.
Of we went towards the fountain and he states he needs a Coke Zero and I said I do too. He knows where the cheapest drinks were and we went to the Carousel with horses to get the drinks. Once we had the drinks and I paid I had to wait for $2 change and I was doing something in my bag when it arrived and he put out his hand and took the change and to my shame I thought he was going to pocket it. This is the clincher... I have to trust... I don't do trust very well. I felt so happy when he handed me the money and that's what makes these interactions so rewarding. I'm experiencing moral beauty in some one who has every reason not to have any.
Walking along I told him a story Id seen recently, where a
young mother was in the shower with a baby in her arm and young son. Son
helping with washing mummy's legs and bum who says to his mummy – “turn around
now mumma I want to wash your nuts”. He laughed out loud and so did I.
Down at the fountain he wants me to get in and cool off my feet, believe me if my knees could have managed that I would of. People were staring but I didn't care. He said he could get some shorts and a T shirt for me if I wanted to get in and I said like Id fit your clothes.... He says "I only buy one size fits all so I can share". What a knight hey! We drank our cokes and he told me a story about his lovely little friend who was staying at his mums house with him once and got sick and spewed all over her clothes. So sick she passed out and they had to get the ambulance. When she woke up in his clothes she started freaking out about where her clothes were and he calmed her down by telling her his mum was at home washing them because they were covered in spew and you have my clothes on.
Cokes finished and he wants to come shopping with me and I said I'm shopping in Tuggeranong and he said Ok that's too far away for me. As he is putting his shoes on I said you know what Russell "you have lovely shaped feet" We hugged and with my head full of poetry and a happy heart I cruised towards my air-conditioned car to meet another friend who also does me good.
1 comment:
This is lovely Kim
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