Strangers Are Better To Meet Poem by Lawrence S. Pertillar

As a child I was taught,
Not to speak or accept one thing...
From any stranger I met.
And that included candy, toys...
Or money they sought to give to me.
So I thought to myself...
'Would they be strangers,
IF I should make them my friends?
Would they stay strangers,
IF we agreed to share...
With a sharing that began? '

Then I became older.
With the hearing of the word borrow.
To learn from 'friends' I thought I knew.
When every now and then they would borrow,
Money and other things from me...
I had to keep reminding them,
From where they got the money.
And other things from me too.

Needless to say I no longer listen,
To anyone wishing to 'borrow' a cent from me.
With it known from past experiences,
Any money I give I will never again see.
To know this today and with it kept to believe,
Strangers are better to meet.
Than the keeping of leeching friends,
Doing their best to avoid,
Repaying me what they owe.

'Why do so many people around here,
Wear masks to hide their true identities? '

They are hoping to keep their status as strangers.
But once you have noticed,
How skilled they are with exchanging their masks...
You too will begin to seek strangers to be friends.
To know their main task is not to adorn masks.
And hopefully they wont 'if' your friendships last.

'LOL. That's funny.
You've got jokes, huh? '

A fool you may perceive me to be.
But the face you see is not one of a clown.
Eventually you'll find many of them around.
Easy they will become to observe in this town.