Casualties of Life

"In war, truth is the first casualty"
-- Aeschylus

The old lady no longer leaves her house, when she sees the icy crunch of snow on the ground. Having fallen seriously once, she no longer trusts her body to keep its balance on the snow in her street, compacted by many feet into treacherous pits and bumps that may twist a foot or turn a knee. Oh, the embarrassment of lying on the cold snow and having to rely on others to help her back up. She knows better than to put herself into that position again. Much better to wait for the pavement to be clear and the footholds sure.

The old gentleman squints at the coins he received in change, questioning their quantity and quality. "Can't be too trusting", he says sideways to me, the next person in the queue. "You snooze you lose, better safe than sorry!" as he stuffs the coins with the old Kleenex and a single screw into his faded jeans pocket.