I GOT NO LEGS

I saw this beggar in the streets of Bangkok one day. Both his legs were cut off at the knee, and he was sitting on a blanket in the street, holding his bowl up towards me, and I heard a slight «pleeease» as I walked past him. I thought he looked funny. It would be really fun to watch him run around on his stumps, like a pair of really short legs. It would look awesome. I wonder if it’s possible for him to do that.

I think that guy is kinda lucky. He still has arms, and he has a job. It might not be the most interesting job in the world, but compared to other jobs they have around here, it’s not that bad. He could be making cheap clothes for wealthy westerners in a sweatshop, or he could have been making tiny computer parts in prison-like factories. With the begging job, he can get up when he wants to, and go home when he wants to. There’s no boss telling him that he’s lazy, even if he just sits around talking to people all day. Begging isn’t that bad.

Back home, we never let people without legs work like that. They get to sit at home all day, probably just watching the same boring soap operas over and over again, or getting addicted to World of Warcraft or some other online game. They don’t get fresh air, and everyone thinks they’re just useless people who are missing essential parts. If I had no legs, I think I’d move to Bangkok. Then I could run around on my stumps and entertain people like me.