She’s off work and she’s walking home. She thinks to herself that a walk will be good for her, and indeed in many ways it will be. Get the old blood flowing. She’ll have to make her way through some of the poorer quarters, but that’s okay, she hasn’t always been as successful as she is now.
This means passing through the bad part of town, but what of it? There’s not much, she realizes, that separates her from them. If the machine were to break down one week, and she were to have to go without the check they cut her every two weeks, it would be over. If she missed even one of these, it would be over. She’d have to find a home among the hobo bags.
She looks them over as she goes by, thinking at first that it’s impolite to stare, but then realizing that these people have long stopped caring if they’re looked over. Any look at all carries with it the possibility of a dime or a nickel and is worth enduring for that reason alone. Besides, she only wants to look.
Funny how they all seem to belong to one tribe when their manner of dress and appearance varies so wildly. Look at that fellow there in the patchwork business suit. He used to trade blue chip stocks. Look at that lady with all the bags and girls sweatshirts. Those sweatshirts used to be her daughter’s, when her daughter was young.
Here’s another interesting sight: the old man who sits slumped against the wall. Try to see beyond the wall. Just a few feet behind his sweaty back, people are still hanging on, are still getting it done, are still doing business, are still selling their antique engagement rings and cell phones. The game is still going on for them.
But how thin that wall really is. Just inches, really. About as thick as the length of time from one paycheck to the next. Speaking of which, you’re getting paid again next week, aren’t you? Maybe you can afford that taxi after all. Look, here’s one now. Roll up the windows and you’ll find it easier to ignore the yawning maw of agony opening beneath your feet.
This is not just a city somewhere out there. This is your city! The line between those who are just making it by and those who have totally lost everything can be as thin as the capricious whims of a coffee shop franchise owner. This is a heavy burden for any one to carry, much less for all. When will the beast’s back at last be broken under this yoke?
Tags: escape, job, master-slave system