Bohemia Village Voice

A Smile of Assurance

Henry was bored, but he smiled. He was an insurance salesman working for a very large bank, but he didn’t work in an office, instead he worked on the street, in fact, this street.
It might seem strange, but this was normally a very busy street, especially during the week when London-bound commuters filled the pavements. The station stood at the end of the street, but today was Sunday, and although Henry worked every day and at all hours, the commuters did not.
There had been a few churchgoers earlier, but it was raining hard, so they had hidden under their umbrellas, ignoring Henry. He felt sad, but he smiled. They could at least have said ‘Good morning’.
The rain was easing now. There could be a few potential customers about soon. Henry considered everyone to be a potential customer, adult or child.
Ah! A young couple! Whether they were married or just courting, the opportunities were wide, Henry smiled as he always did. He was handsome, his face inspired confidence. He was impeccably dressed, and carried an expensive-looking briefcase in one hand and a long black umbrella in the other. All this, however, had no effect on the young couple. They only had eyes for each other. Henry still smiled.
More people were about now, but Henry began to feel that he was the famous invisible man. Nobody took any notice of him . . . night came. The street was empty again. Henry smiled. Perhaps tomorrow will be better he thought, still smiling. The next day the street was very busy. Henry smiled, but again he might have been invisible. Henry still smiled.
But today was the day that Henry became redundant. He knew as soon as he saw a familiar figure climb out of the blue van, his job in insurance was over and Henry himself had no insurance cover. Henry still smiled.
Rip! Henry’s lower body was gone. Henry still smiled. Rip! Henry’s head and his caption disappeared, Henry no longer smiled. He was crumpled up and crammed into a black bag.
In his place on the biggest hoarding in town went a baby, selling nappies. Only another form of insurance after all.