The boy was eight years old and pretended to have one leg
shorter than the other, by walking with one foot in the gutter
and the other foot on the pavement. He tried to run that way
but it was difficult, lost his balance and fell. A strange boy
often alone dreaming about what to do, he had told his mother
he wanted to be an actor and play many roles and be everything
at once. Either that or to an opera singer be famous, traveling
around the world. His mother didn´t think much of his plans and
anyway this was his last day in this town, tomorrow he was being
sent to farm, that had cows, horses, and sheep. He had no say in
the matter, his mother was sick and had to go to a sanatorium.
He didn´t mind it so much liked horses and could be a cowboy but
he had to go to school too and the children were sure to mob him for
talking city like. Down at the docks, a big ship was birthing, she came
all the way from Conakry in Africa. The boy decided to be a sailor,
and walked home to tell his mother.
