Scene From Delhi - 2

An old man with one leg hobbles up to an auto at rest on his one crutch while I stand on a streetcorner. He begs in a low rasp for money and is denied. As traffic starts to move, he hobbles back to the sidewalk. His black t-shirt says, in a loopy white script, "Definitely sexy." The next traffic set stops, and he hobbles back out. Some cruel high school girls make fun of him, and he moves on to another vehicle, the same low begging rasp just barely audible above the internal combustion din. These passengers put on radiation-grade urban shields and act like they don't see him. As he hobbles back, dodging all manner of traffic, he sits down on the curb, his skinny leg and quarter splayed out in front of him. A tear forms in his eye and stutteringly makes its way down his weathered cheek. It could just be the dust, we all tell ourselves.