– You know, Sebastian, sometimes I never understand God.
– God? Sir? Which God?
– What does that mean, Sebastian? How many Gods are there?
– I don’t know, sir. How many do you think?
– Of course there is one, Sebastian. He is the God we know. Behold, who provides justice.
– Is it justice, sir? Which justice?
Justice on earth and in the other world, of course, Sebastian.
Sir, forgive me, but I can’t see justice on earth.
Don’t be silly, Sebastian. Of course, there is justice on earth.
– I don’t think so, sir.
– Why do you think so, Sebastian?
– Because if there was justice on earth, sir, the only son of a poor peasant would not die in battle, and the sons of the king would not be alive today. Because that single son died so that the sons of the king could continue their comfortable lives.
– Don’t be silly, Sebastian! The son of that poor died for our country and died. Martyrdom is the highest rank a person can reach. He is even superior to the kingdom rank of martyrdom.
– I guess the king must never love his sons or even himself, sir.
– Why did you say that, Sebastian?
– Because while standing at a higher rank like martyrdom, he only chooses to be content with the kingdom, sir.
– I don’t understand you, Sebastian. What are you trying to say?
– Just the facts, sir.
– You must be crazy, Sebastian. May God give you reason.
– Which God, sir? Is he distributing justice? Or is it not even moving your hair in the face of all this injustice?
– What are you talking about? There is only one god. Don’t you know him?
– Unfortunately, there are no gods in my acquaintances, sir. I don’t know much already. I know my colleague Philip, who is the servant of the side mansion, Moris, the village farmer, and this poor peasant, whose only son died in the war, sir. But I don’t know any gods. Do you know?
Charles Bukowski – Notes of a Dirty Old Man (1969)
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