The grey white man and his colourful balloons

There are some instances which otherwise would go unnoticed, but if you take a second to
sit and notice it really,
you realise how preposterously heartless the human race has become, and how unbelievable cruel things have taken on an attire of virility and god knows what justifications.
Yesterday, i was sitting in a cafe with a friend, next to a huge glass wall which overlooked the every busy and touristy mg road.
It seems like the whole of Pune comes out in the late evenings to relax with their friends, their loved ones.
The atmosphere is always of joy and happy purchases, and of course coffee.
this seemed like the perfect table to sit and relax, and space out looking at the thousands of people and cars, and vendors, the likes.
There is something about glass walls, that in an instant distances you from the inches of proximity, just like that.
So, me and my friend, celebrating the fact that i have come an hour early from the office, have snuggled in this cozy corner looking out waiting for the order.
And out of nowhere, this teddy bear of a man,
appears in front of us on the other side of the glass,
he is wearing a white ( which is so endearingly grey now )
separated by a sheet of transparency, we can barely hear him,
suddenly i feel like a spectator in a zoo,
and a showpiece in a shop, both at the same time.
This man, all white and grey,
the nehru topi,
the pathani, and a white beard,
the baby fat probably never left him, or maybe came back after youth.
Holding out a bunch of brightly coloured balloons,
not insisting, just smiling at us,
i burst out laughing at the suddenness of the situation
and also at the warm feeling he created in me, making me want to hug him,
like a grandfather, ( for reasons that shall be explained in another post, both my grandfathers
have never really invoked in me the feeling of the relationship, talked so much about in stories)
hes there just smiling, laughing in fact at my sudden laugh,
his head slightly tilted back in a ho ho ho laughter,
both of us, i like to believe shared a moment, which would linger.
And again out of nowhere,
he is kicked and pushed aside by this
young dutiful policemen, hollering at him for troubling us...
that moment was lost, the good humor was lost,
and everything else that cannot be described in words was also lost.
A new feeling took its place,
one of disturbance, of pity
of empathy,
and of overwhelming guilt.
He disappeared into the night,
with his colourful balloons,
and his whiteness turned grey,
all the color drained from his face,
into the oblivion, right where he came from,
he left his smile while leaving, with me,
i wish to return it if i get a chance.