haiku

down

go jump off a bridge 

and you will see the devil

this is an insult  

found pome

kid speech

on our fathers brought forth this proposition dedicated

liberty to men seven to four years old.

in that nation a new and equal age

are created and conceived

a long time ago

the stranger

I woke up this morning to the blaring sound of my alarm clock. I sluggishly switched it off then got out of bed and prepared myself for another boring day at work.  I wasn’t the only one not ready for the day to begin.  My vehicle reluctantly started as well. As I was driving along the familiar road, with the same familiar turns and straightaways to work, I noticed an unfamiliar lump on the side of the road. I slowly drove closer and noticed more detail in the form.  It was a man.  A rather tattered looking man, wearing a trashy tan coat and torn up jeans with holes almost everywhere.  He had a scraggly beard and worn face.  He was positioned face down in the roadside muck with his arms and legs spread out.  I eased my truck just ahead of the man and killed the engine. I walked over to see if he was okay.  Not only did he look dirty but he smelled like garbage.

“Hey buddy, are you alright?” I yelled. I nudged him with my foot to see if he would respond.  Still no answer.  I turned him over to see his face better.  “Dang, this guy is tore up’’ I thought to myself.  He was unconscious so I checked for a pulse on his wrist, like I’d seen in the movies.

Ba Bump

Ba Bump

Good. Was it strong or weak? I was just a little bit excited that I was able to find it. I felt a wave of panic wash over me, “What do I do now?” I thought to myself.  Like a pelican swooping into water to grab a fish, my hand automatically swooped into my pocket to grab my phone.  I smashed the buttons on the screen as fast as I could and held the phone up to my ear.

“911, What is your emergency?” The woman on the other side of the line asked calmly.

“There is a man on the side of the road, he is passed out and needs medical attention!”  I hurriedly said with worry in my voice.

“What is your name?”, The dispatch operator asked.

“Pete Walberg”,  I answered.

“And where are you right now Pete?”

“I’m on county road 24, about two miles east from Delta!”

“Pete, what is the number that you are calling from, just incase we get disconnected?”

“982-555-6789”

“Pete, is the man breathing?”

“He seems to be, but it sounds funny.”

“Stay calm now Pete, does he appear to be injured in any way?”

“No ma’am, not that I can see.  I mean maybe.  I don’t know.  Please help.”

“Help is on the way Pete,  just stay calm, I need you to stay on the line with me until help     arrives, okay?”

“Yes ma’am”

    We talked a bit more, I informed the operator of the man’s pulse and his physical appearance.  

“That’s good, Pete, you’re doing an amazing job,” she said reassuringly.  

After what seemed hours, I heard the distant wailing of emergency vehicles approaching.  Thank God!  

“Pete, I want you to know that you did wonderful.  Now one more thing, try to write down everything that happened just as soon as you can while it is fresh in your mind.”

“I will, and thank you ma’am.”

“Have a good day Pete”

The medics wasted no time in loading the man, victim, hobo? Who was this poor guy? I gave my story to the police officer who accompanied the ambulance to the scene.  The officer also gathered my contact information incase they needed more details on what I knew.  Again, I was asked to write a statement down of the event while it was still fresh in my head.  

Just as the last paramedic was jumping into the driver’s seat of the ambulance I asked if she thought if the stranger was going to be alright.  I was assured that they would do everything they could for him.  I was left on the side of the road with nothing but a police officer’s business card and a bunch of questions. I think I almost preferred my boring day that I was having before all this craziness.  

Questions filled my mind and fantastic scenarios played out in detail as I tried to go about my office work.  There was definitely no way I was going to get any work done until I had at least a few questions answered.  Who was this person that I happened upon?  Perhaps he was a rich millionaire, no wait, a billionaire who was mugged and left for dead and would now reward me with riches for saving his life.  Maybe he even had a beautiful daughter.  I chuckled to myself with some of my foolishness.  

Bbbrrrrriinnnngggg

My phone rang.  It was the police officer from this morning.  

“Pete Walberg?”

“This is him.”

“Pete, you didn’t tell us that you spoke with the gentleman this morning.”

“Uhhh, I didn’t.”

“Not at all?”

“I swear, I didn’t say anything nor did he say anything to me.  He was out cold.”

“ This is very strange, Pete.  I communicated with the gentleman myself and he said that you spoke to him at length about how you invited him to stay with you just as soon as he got out of the hospital.”

“What?!!”

“ He also said that you were going to pick him up from the hospital.”

“The dude was half dead!”

“Mr. Walberg, could you please meet me down at Twisted Grove General Hospital?”

“Yes sir, I’ll be there in just a little bit.”

More questions.  Questions upon questions.  I am definitely never going to help a lump on the side of the road ever again.

The hospital was a large ten story glass monster.  I met the officer from the morning event in the lobby.  We went over again the  details of the morning. I asked if I could see the man so I could talk to him and understand what he was talking about.  It was not suggested that I talk to the stranger yet.  I had to get to this guy and find out what was going on.  I had a plan.  I asked if it would be okay to take a break and grab some food from the cafeteria.  In the cafeteria I caused a distraction by spilling some hot soup into the lap of a small child.  I’m so ashamed of myself.  I found the room number of the stranger by snooping into the hospital computer.  Who knew it would be so easy?  John Doe room number 2356.  I located the room and found the stranger lying up in bed and watching television.  

“Pete!”  

“Who are you?” I asked

“You don’t recognize me? Not at all?”

“Not at all.” I exclaimed.  Yet, there was something familiar about the voice.  Maybe something also in his eyes.  I’ve seen him before, but where?

“Hahahahaha!! I can see the confusion on your face.  It’s okay, you’ll figure it out soon enough.  It’s been nearly 20 years.”

My recognition started to grow.

“Awww, there you go.  How could you forget?”

This couldn’t be.  The face was older but the eyes and the voice were still the same.  That stupid laugh.  I left that trash dead long ago.  

“I know you think I died, but don’t feel bad, I didn’t.  Obviously.”

My head was starting to spin.  I was beginning to panic.  

“I’m back for what you stole from me.” I was informed.

“Please,” I begged. “I didn’t mean to do it. I was desperate and just wanted to know what this was all about.  You always made it sound so interesting.”

“I know what you mean, but you see I haven’t been able to be myself ever since you….left.”

    I knew in my heart that I couldn’t resist or even give fight.  I was as much a part of this man as he was of me.  In fact I was him.  He was me.  Some cultures believe in a person having two selves.  One that is real and another that is dream.  One that is good and one that is bad.  Yes, I was the dream and I emerged from this man’s imagination.  I had believed him dead years ago after he suffered a major brain injury in a car accident.  Although I detested this man’s evil tendencies, I couldn’t escape the fact that he was me.  

Knock

Knock

Knock

“Yes?”

“I’m sorry sir. We just wanted to check on you and make sure all was okay.”

“I’m fine Mr. Officer, sir.”

“Sorry to bother you, but did you happen to see the gentleman who helped you out on the side of the road this morning?”  

“No sir, Mr. Officer, sir.  Haha”

    As the officer exited the room the stranger turned back to the television.  Feeling quite satisfied with himself and quite complete.