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The Man from Everywhere but Here

A Childhood Cancer Survivor Poem
© 2016 Christine Mulvihill

At the spot people still glance as they pass, see it empty and give a sigh
You can still hear his cheerful whistling as you go by
Now the corner where the strange man lived is dull and clear
The spot where he lived, the man from everywhere but here.

The strange man talked of places never seen
He talked of places no one had ever been
He talked of beautiful princesses, kings and knights
He talked of fierce battles and winning fights,

People who were from out of town thought he was just full of beer
But the local people knew he was the man from everywhere but here.

He talked of Trolls and Giants as tall as the eye could see
He talked of maidens and fair ladies as beautiful as can be
He talked of conquering fiery dragons without a scrape
He talked of guarded dungeons where he’d always escape.

He talked of tall trees and mountains oh so high
He talked of big castles that would scrape the sky
He talked of great far off enchanted lands
He talked of places where good and evil always held hands.

People ask him if he was ever afraid to die
He’d take his finger and point to the sky
With that same old sparkle in his eye
He’d say the day that star up there is gone
That is the day that I will move on.

His cheerful whistling would brighten anyone’s day
His enchanting whistling would make the rain go away
He’d sit in the same spot all day and talk to the young and the old
He talks to the nicest, the meanest and even the bold.

That winter the clouds rolled in and it snowed for quite a while
But no matter how cold the strange man always wore a smile
He became so pale he was as white as a ghost
But no matter how cold he still had time to boast.

Boast about all that he had seen and done
Boast about all the pretty ladies he had won
He’d tell you still about all the people he’d met
He’d tell you about all the sly traps he’d set.

The winter wore on and so did the snow
But the strange man never looked low
That night the clouds rolled away
To reveal that the man's star had gone away.

The next day the man had vanished out of sight
All that was left was his blanket and pipe
The man never came back after that day
But his cheerful whistling will never go away.

At the spot people still glance as they pass, see it empty and give a sigh
You can still hear his cheerful whistling as you go by
Now the corner where the strange man lived is dull and clear
The spot where he lived, the man from everywhere but here.


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