The Crying Man
The girl pointed to the strange man
standing at the edge of the park
“Mommy,” look at the crying man.”
mommy looked and many more
people looked at the crying man
as they walked next to the park
shame turned their heads away
“But he’s crying” a young boy said
as his dad yanked him away
people noticed, pointed, and stopped
to stare at the tall stranger
his long face rolling with tears
by mid-day the man's shirt was soaked
with unabashed salt
"Look at the funny man"
a child yelled and pointed
a young man in a wheelchair
looked up and rolled quickly past
then a policeman stopped by
to ask the gathered crowd to move on
Finally, during the commotion
one brave or silly elderly lady
half his size with a bent back and graying hair
stopped in front of the tearful man
looked up into his tearful face
and asked “Why are you crying?”
insistently she grabbed his elbow
and pulled him down to sit on green park bench
"There, there now," she said, patting him on the shoulder
“It can’t be so bad.”
At the mercy in her voice he sniffled
and stopped
tears finally spent
the un-crying man’s silence filled the park
for a long moment
he looked down at the kindly lady
then spoke into hush of the waiting crowd
“I was told, but I couldn't believe. I came to see for myself.”
“What did you come to see?” asked the sweet lady
The stranger sniffed but did not cry
He spoke this explanation
“I cry because your God is crooked.”
“Our God loves us.” the lady said.
as if suddenly appalled by her ignorance, he said
“You don’t know? None of you?”
“Please tell
“On my world no one is unwell or miserable or sad."
“Very nice,” the lady said in a patronizing voice.
then she added, “I wish our world could be like yours.”
At her words the strange tall man began to cry once more.
this time he spoke through his sobs,
“But don’t you see?....” he sniffled,
“It was before Satan came.”
with those words, the man vanished
his sobs fading away until
they too were gone.