Faces of Loneliness

Just some scribbles of thoughts - the mentally ill, the elderly, children, homeless pets, and even we can be - sometimes even in a crowd... He was always dancing, no matter the time, a smile and a bow to whoever walked by, then a skip and a hop and a diddly bop - a spin, a grin, then another bow. I watched him once when no one was around; he just looked at the ground and stared. Whenever we drove by the lady down the lane; she always had a polite wave if she noticed us passing. One day on a walk, I stopped to talk - she cheerfully beamed about her garden and the beautiful day, but then she paused and said, "Sorry, I must go and see my love... who doesn't know me anymore... but I still know him". In the summer, a boy walked by every day, tossing a ball into his glove on the way to the park; shortly after he would come back down the street, his head a little lower. I asked, "Aren't you gonna play?" "They already got a game" was always his answer, but one day he said, "Wanna play some catch?" I knew right where my old glove was - everyone needs a friend, even me. Dave was a sad old coot, over in the corner, barely glancing as I walked through the shelter. I couldn't leave without him, so Dave came home with me that day. My friends thought Dave was a strange name for a dog but after four years they thought Dave was a better name for a dog than a person - they all went with me when we said goodbye. When everyone went home that night the house was very empty...