in search of

The elusive BALLOON MAN.

Under the blue sky, in the brightest of sunny days, we came to count on his presence there on the corner. Expected to see him waving merrily.

But as the rain descends, the beloved Balloon Man becomes the recluse we secretly knew him to be. That smile, those waving hands--- too bright, trying too hard, hiding something.

Now when we pass the corner, we see him peeking out of the window--- face deflated, a misshapen mess. Sometimes we spy him sleeping, eating dinner with his family.

A whole world has been built around him. We construct bedtime rituals and goodnight songs, an out-of-town family consisting of brothers and sisters and cousins. (It so happens that Balloon Man has a bright green cousin who lives on top of a car wash in Las Cruces, New Mexico. Now you know.) Balloon Man himself has become a character in this growing montage, someone we talk about, someone we don't see.

But we have hope. Hope that on the next sunny day...