Street Scene
by Adrian Lowe and Anthony Frost
performed by David W Solomons
Colindale!
Out he walks, six feet tall,
twenty two years, ripped jeans,
but respectable
(it's Saturday after all).
He's no threat, he's going to cruise the shops.
Along she walks with her groceries,
old, frail, her life hangs behind her like a snailtrail,
dirty but still quite natural.
Her eyes focus, she sees him:
the determined stride and the baseball cap,
the torn pants and his Walkman.
Happily giving out the sounds of rap as he tries to forget
all the crap that is society
Fearful, frightened, full of disgust and mistrust, she crosses the street,
scowling like a scornful cat that's just been thrown off a lap.
I felt ashamed,
I felt annoyed
What about trust?
I just wouldn't react that way.
But then, as a youth approached me I had a sudden and crucial thought.
I don't want to be smashed up and I don't want to lose these things that I've just bought.
So I crossed the street and silently became a product of this century.