THE STREETS AT CHRISTMAS
Fred sighed in disgust. He put the sandwich back on the shelf and left the shop.
“A bacon and cheese sandwich - the price of it. How am I to survive and pay for the likes of a sandwich, that only a prince could afford”
Fred cleared his throat and collected his blankets and food from the volunteers later that evening. His chest was heavy from the half-smoked fags he had found that day near the bus station. His chest was heavy from the pain he felt in his heart - being alone was hard for him, especially at this time of year.
Christmas decorations adorned every pillar and every post and looking up at all that coloured tinsel, he felt like he may not experience another festive season again.
Fred was sixty-five and living on the streets four months now. He was scared too.
The cold was seeping into his bones each night while he huddled for shelter under a white duvet near the city centre.
A doorway was his home and the volunteers were like his family. They cared for him so tenderly like a mother with a new born child. They fed him and provided for him and made sure he was okay.
He’d have kept his home - his real home if it weren’t for the drink. It stole everything from him. His wife - his job - his pride. He did have his new family though - his comrades who begged with him and cried with him in the early hours. They fought each other too - for the last slug from a bottle of wine and for the last drag of a joint.
On Christmas Eve morning, Fred found out he’d received a room in a hostel - a good one. Sally his favourite volunteer secured a place for him there - he could stay that very night.
But Fred’s ties with his comrades were strong and his ties with the bottle were even stronger. It snowed Christmas Eve night and while kids hurried to go play in the snow - Fred was found sleeping in his doorway and they could not wake him up.
Sally ran to the street where Fred had been found. She would contact his next of kin - if indeed he had one - and if she made contact, Sally knew all too well that their Christmas would never be the same again.