A surprise to see a younger man coming along scavenging through the drains, lifting the grates, lying himself down full length and scraping with bare hand. The long sapling one hand and plastic bag wound around the other, for the coin. About the right age to be the son of the elder, who was spotted just a couple days before over at the Haig at his trade. Had the old man taken a turn, been unable to rise from his bed that morning. Very easily happens of course, even overnight. Elder had appeared his old self on the Friday, before the busier weekend. It would be to honour the father too the immediate resumption; precisely what you would expect in a filial culture. (The old Malay engineer from Katong, who of course well-knew the other, agreed it was likely.)
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