Tale # 4

I saw a big man walk out of any ally today with a rather large stump on his shoulder. He was a tall broad shouldered clean cut looking man. He looked the sort one might see wearing a suit and tie in another time and place. His face was distorted by pain. But not physical pain…he looked on the verge of tears as he diligently set about his task. As I watched him with tender fascination I began to understand what he was doing. He set the stump down at the front of the little alcove of a park on one of Vancouver’s most bustling and vibrant streets. This park lies at the end of street of many trees. This stump was the remnant of what I could only imagine was an incredibly beautiful tree…its lush almost crimson bark stunning to me – it still looked alive – it was much like looking at a stunning severed head actually - fresh off the chopping block. It was so big that I could scarcely believe a man could have carried it. Pulling garbage from the trash, posters off the posts, litter from the street the man proceeded to sculpt and construct a being of newspaper, Starbucks coffee cups, snickers wrappers, posters, remnants of our abandoned and forgotten material oblivion atop of the this beautiful severed tree’s base. He did it all with grim determination, forcefully holding back angry tears. People looked on puzzled and unsettled by his “abnormal” sidewalk behavior. Many’s gaits were interrupted as they sidestepped the creation trying to make sense of what was being created. Some bitterly trudged on passed him, annoyed that he was taking up space – others looked into his face, looked him up and down for signs of a mad man. There were few commonly exceptable signs to draw upon and dismiss… he was a tall clean cut white middle aged man, wearing rather ordinary clothes and standard glasses. Besides the pain on his face and the pace of his beleaguered walk there was little to draw conclusions about and dismiss in ignorance.

However when he set about picking up all the newspaper boxes from the surrounding street corners (approximately seven or eight of them) I over heard someone mutter “he’s a mad man…someone’s going to call the cops soon”. My heart fluttered briefly – my eyes grew wide with excitement. Shouldering them, stumbling a little with each trek across the street…the man brought them each dose, 24, national post, globe and mail, sun, province newspaper box and trash can down with a thundering thud and arranged them around the stump and at the centre of it all, a little being of trash stood with arms out to the world, paper cup head and garbage tail draped over the edge of the stump. The sight was maddening. I can scarcely imagine the scene’s deeply disturbing visual and psychic implications being lost on anyone. He vanished back into the ally as quickly as he had emerged. He never said a word.

I felt like jumping up and down shouting “I get it! I get it!”. Feebly wanting to explain away the sadness I saw in his eyes as he walked away…to console the inconsolable. I wanted to run around explaining with tremendous intensity to anyone with bewildered doubt in their face - why he was not mad at all, what it all meant. But I didn’t – my heart just sank – there would be no great revolution tonight. Neither my voice nor his hands would hold back another tree from falling, nor stem the hemorrhaging tide of our consumption. No, not tonight at least. Maybe one day – in some small way – but for now I had to be content with the sight of that grotesquely beautiful being of discord heaped atop the remnants of one of my most favourite specimens of life and hope that the army of the discontented swells to a size where we all break norms and silence to communicate our pain, outrage and dreams. I shrugged, picking up my groceries, and in a long deep breath I took one more deeply searching look at the sculpture and walked home. Just before I turned away an excited hetero couple bounced up to it and in breathless tones gasped “Its fucking great! “This is the most awesome thing I have seen all day…wouldn’t you agree?” I nodded and smiled a mischievious smile as my insides warmed in anticipation…maybe not tonight, but one day.