Canyons of Glass #8

Man At Gate 413

by Brian Jude

Waiting at Gate 413
I once caught glimpse of a man.
So tall, so cool,
A man who looked like he had it all together.
A good looking man
With a beard that outlined his stone face.
A rugged look, weathered by the extremities of the city,
Deep lines cradled under his cheeks from years of smiles.
His hair not unkempt, but stylishly shaggy.
Eyeglasses that made him look intelligent
but not bookish.
A tattered leather jacket that he gave more to
than it gave to him.
Light blue denim jeans that rested comfortably
upon his brown suede boots.
A single small, diamond-stud earring that showed that he wasn't too conservative
nor too alternative.

He was mature,
On the road to greatness
and he knew it..
He knew what it was all about.
He had life all figured out.
And I was jealous.
For here before me was no little boy
who's afraid of the Big Bad World,
looking to hide under a warm blue comforter
with two soft, comfortable pillows under his dreamy head -
No child who second-guesses the coarse of his life
like me.
No. Here was a man.
A real man!
A secure, satisfied man
who loved life for what it is,
who wrestled with destiny when he had to
and won.

I knew I could tell him my fears
and insecurities
and fears
and he would say, "Been there. Done that.
Now here's what you do."

Man, this guy was my hope,
my hero.
I could tell.
This was the kind of guy who'd take me under his wing
and show me all I wanted to know,
answer all of my endless questions,
putting me on the right path to the perfect life,
showing me how to mend the ruptures of my soul,
righting all of my wrongs,
correcting and never condemning,
and doing it all with a smile
because he loved me.

We smiled at each other
be cause we understood.
I took a step as the passengers began to board their bus
He took a step as well.
We walked beside each other
I scratching my right ear,
he scratching his left.
And as we approached the door to the gate
we took a glance at each other one last time,
winking with opposite eyes.
And as I walked through the door
he vanished from his world within the window.
Suddenly I realized in that wink
he had told me all I needed to know.

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