Two

by Dominic Berry

The nice woman was shocked to spot him emptying a sack of crumpled crisp packets over the grass outside the church. Why? He has been the most attentive member of the Litter Picking Brigade. No one else has spoken more passionately about the need to clean these streets than him. No one else has attended more litter picking mornings than him. Why? He can't answer. The truth feels grimy inside his mind. Some thoughts, once spoken, become far too messy to ever pick back up and tidy away. If these streets were clean, no litter left to pick, where would he go? Who would he see? Who would he be? These mornings outside the church are sacred. He prays they will never end.