Last night, we took the Coach to Stratford upon Avon to watch a performance of Antony and Cleopatra by the Royal Shakespeare Company. The show was an amazing blend of modernism and classic Shakespeare, and a review will be included by next Wed.
What was more striking, though, happened only a half hour ago. After class I set out to buy a proper rain jacket, winding through the back streets in a collage of rain and people. After my purchase, I wandered around for a while, taking in the lack of umbrellas for the dreary day.
There is not much here, except for my walk back, about a mile, when I encountered a man face down in an alley. I walked over to him and gave him 10 lbs for some food, and he gave me a magazine (In England they have homelessness worked down to a corporate science, and all homeless people have nice dogs and sell magazines). I guess I found a unique glimpse of humanity in those seconds, and his face stays with me now.
For Danny
In the Rain on St Johns St.
I crushed a butterfly, flattened him orange
into the stone. And there, looking down
an alleyway, tucked against a dog, I saw
a shivering blueprint of a man
designed to be dust.
I love that poem. But I hope you didn't really crush a butterfly! :p
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