Different (Without Her) Poem by LLM Mbatha

Ever since I’ve known him
I’ve also known her
I never saw the two apart
Never saw them without a fight
Two lovers, homeless and old
Begging together
From flat to flat
Down Alma Road, Rosebank
Under the subway, sleeping together
But their favorite spot:
The pavement’s grey
Beside my flat
Below my window
An Afrikaans woman
And an English man
He could be 60
She could be younger
The way a man
Would love his woman
He loved her so
Any one could tell
No other beggar could speak to her
Without dust rising high!
But these past few days
He looks different
She’s not around
He occupies the spot alone
It’s too quiet
The days are slow
The nights longer
He sits on the stairs
Staring into thin air
Pensive, pensive, pensive…
As I pass him by
He recalls my face
He says, hello
Without raising his head...