Like a green caterpillar Trying to hide its identity By balancing itself on a stem Between two green leaves Hoping that no one would notice it Likewise she parked herself between Two large croton bushes Whose lemon and brown leaves Seemed to perfectly match the colors Of her earth colored once floral dress She took immense care to avoid Any rustling of the leaves Lest she draws unwanted attention Then soundlessly she lowered herself Onto the ground and sat down Unwrapped a packet of sandwiches And devoured them very hungrily All this he watched from quite a distance Without her noticing his presence Wondering why she had to hide And eat what must have been her lunch It was not long before he had an answer A little boy appeared from nowhere Crying loudly that his lunch box Was empty and that he was hungry The young man walked quietly from behind Meaning to catch her red-handed But he was shocked into silence She lay there in a heap almost motionless With a half eaten sandwich on the ground The earth colored dress that he had seen Was but a well worn dirty blouse and skirt She had probably not eaten for days And in her hurry to finish the stolen meal She had probably choked on the bread – He stood there unable to suppress the tears Another life gone in vain
