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A poem to ponder
While standing near an old style pay phone
Those boxy booths from way back when
The burr-ring burr-ing starts to blast over and over again
A fleeting thought enters your curious mind
Do you answer to see who it is and do something kind
Or do you just walk on and not bother this time
That is the moment you are put to the question
What would you care yet there is suddenly tension
For sure this phone call cannot be for you
It’s just a mistake that a caller did make and what good would it do
Go on with your business comes to you then
But what if this caller is in need of a friend
Someone to talk to that’s why they are making the call
It could be something you would never forgive yourself for or nothing at all
So, you pick up the receiver and say, “hello who is calling?”
For a moment there’s silence then a voice answers back
It sounds like a young lady for sure not a weird crazy hack
“I’m looking for Waldo is he home is he there?”
Your answer explains who she called and why you dared
A “thank you!” comes back and then the phone goes quietly blank
You say to yourself at least she said “thanks”.
— WOLRAD
(A poem from the Wolrad collection #341)
