Joshua

By Justine C. Tajonera

Even as I hand him
a paper bill,
I know that no amount
will ever be
enough.

He sleeps on
a sidewalk,
bewildered that
anyone would bother
with him.

The cigarette vendor
and newspaper boy
shake their heads.
They don't know why
he keeps going back
to his cardboard
bed
on the corner of a
convenience
store and
Shaw boulevard.


I wonder what
it really means
to give
because I realize
it has nothing to do
with how much.

It all depends
on who he
is,
this boy who
does not
speak,
letting others
tell his
story.

(Jan. 6, 2010)

Image from http://www.flickr.com/photos/elijah/330106188/
The picture is of another boy, (with a coincidentally biblical name, Elijah)