One Saturday morning in Berea <br />I was surrounded by a gang. <br />I let go, let them have their way. <br />After they had emptied my pockets <br />they seemed uncertain what to do. <br />Suddenly they all broke into smiles. <br />'Shame boss! ' said the leader, who <br />had my wallet in his hand. <br />He took five rand out of it <br />and stuffed it into my shirt. <br />They went off shouting with laughter. <br /> <br />Another time I was thrown on the pavement. <br />I fought back and got through a door <br />into the Carlton Centre shopping mall. <br />People bustled round me... <br />Shaking with humiliation and relief <br />I checked the pockets of my coat <br />and found every one had been slit.<br /><br />John Garth Raubenheimer<br /><br />http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/merciful-muggers/
