Light Inside a Homeless Man

I asked Jerry where he lives.
His face brightened.
"On the street" he beamed, "or on the beach"

Lets go back a bit....
I have seen Jerry cleaning in the park. I have seen him sweeping and picking up trash. And I have seen him taking a little nap on a park bench. I thought he worked for the town.
He doesn't.
He just likes things to be clean.

I met him in the street today. He was pushing a shopping cart filled with an old broom and dust pan, an old lamp, a fan, and a back pack. He was carrying a small package in his hand and I was surprised when he showed me what was inside. A new wheel for his shopping cart. It cost $3.50.

He didn't ask for any money. But he did tell me how he was going to fix the lamp and fix the fan.

And then there was the Bible in his pocket.

When I asked him about it, his eyes lit up. Just like they did when I asked him where he lived.

Odd thing. Did you know Jesus was homeless? He said, "Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of man has no place to lay his head" Matt 8:20

I try to keep my eyes open. I try to see what the universe has each day for me to learn. Today I learned that it is possible to have your eyes light up when you speak of your homelessness.

I wonder if my eyes light up when I speak of where I live.

Embracing Discomfort,

Laura

Comments

Mr. Flutter-by

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Beware of Falling Mangoes

There is a book I love called An Embarrassment of Mangoes . Its about a couple sailing in the Caribbean, meeting locals, and collecting recipes. It is nearly my favorite book of all time because this is what I want to do with my life...sail the Caribbean and collect people and recipes. Little did I dream one day I would own a Tiki Bar and B&B in Costa Rica, much less one gifted with mango trees. In fact, I do think I am going to need to post a WATCH FOR FALLING MANGOES sign above my door as the still green fruit is falling off the trees. I have no idea why. A local told me the tree sheds the unwanted-unfit fruit before it ripens. I am glad no-one has shed me. So I am waiting for the fruit to ripen and dreaming of ways to use it: mango-chili chutney, mango mohitos, mango ice-cream, mango topped burgers. I am dreaming quite actively actually, as it looks like soon I will be the proud owner of an embarrassment of mangoes!

Striking Out and Hitting a Home Run

Two months ago, Lee was playing baseball in a field full of garbage with some of the kids on the island of Carenero. An 11 year old girl struck him out. Of course everyone laughed and Lee made his way down the little path that runs through the village where he soon ran into a guy named Javier. Javier speaks great English and is a business owner in the village. The two of them started up a conversation about the conditions the kids were playing in and before you know it, they had agreed to meet the next morning with garbage bags to do a little clean up. The next morning the two of them and about 6 kids spent several hours cleaning up. A week later, the entire town got together and took out 5,000 bags of garbage! And that was just the beginning. Two months later: A few days ago we walked though the village again. I was shocked by how many changes have been made. Probably about 75 percent of the homes have some change besides being cleaner and having their grass cut: new p...

Where Wonder Meets Wander

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