I remember the day
When I saw two young boys
Huddled in a telephone booth
In the pouring rain of Cape Town

Even under the roof
Water dripped from their clothes
While I was warm and dry,
Rain drops bouncing off the car window

The boys' feet were bare
Their clothes ragged and too large
I wanted to help and
To give them warmth, food, hope

And as the cold seeped
Into my bones
People passed by,
Looking, but not seeing,
Knowing that it hurt more to see

The rain pattered pointlessly
On the roof of my comfortable car
The boys sat, trying not to let the bleakness
Swallow them up

A green light blinked and
The car pulled me away from the boys
But they remained in my mind
They will have a place there forever

I wonder if anyone helped them on
That dismal day
Or if they sat there waiting out
The storm and their lot in life

And as they sat there, I wondered if
People would remember them if they disappeared
And I said to myself,
"I promise I'll never forget."