A young woman eked out a living at the port of Piraeus
She had recently been to Troy and was rich with Turkish lira but the money was valueless in her hands as the Greeks spurned their ancient foe
An old man wearing a grey crumpled suit was enjoying a cigarette reading the newspaper in the sun on the wharf
His name was Mr Kolokotronos
He drank the coffee she served him
One day he asked her destiny and she replied I seek to travel further across the sea of middle earth Sir
He replied that if you trust me with your money I will try and help you
He had an honest face and his word was his bond and in the morning he returned and gave her the drachma together with a generous gratuity
She thanked him and he gestured towards a vessel moored at the quai and wrote the name of man called Dimitrios on a scrap of paper his hand trembling with age
Seek him out for he will help you
In the morning she came back to redouble her thanks as she had work again on the next link of her Odyssey like a necklace of shining pearls, but he was gone
The old man had died in the night his last voyage as peaceful as a ship glides into the sea
The magnate’s vast maritime wealth blessed her journey and lit up every star above the Peloponnesus as if to guide her way as the dazzling Grecian light played through fragrant fir trees dappling the sea
He enjoyed his coffee the old man on the wharf
And he would live long in her memory
Flynnpoetry 