Rarely am I moved to tears by strangers but something about this choked me up and I'm about to cry again just thinking abou it. Since it was nice out this afternoon, I decided to walk to lunch. On my way, I saw a young woman probably not much older than me pushing a shopping cart with a bunch of books in it. In my own bias, figuring she was homeless and/or hungry I prepared $2 to give her in case she asked me for it.
Instead she looked me straight in my eye and told me that she wasn't looking for money but could tell thats what I thought by the look in my eye. She'd had money shoved in her face all week since she started walking with her cart and had encountered all kinds of attitudes and strange looks. I was so shook that all I could do was ask what she was doing.
"My mother had a stroke and has been pretty much reduced back to the level of a child. She likes it when I read to her, so I go to the library twice a week and take out a bunch of books and go to her apartment and read to her until she falls asleep in my lap. I'm not homeless, I've got a car and a job and enough to eat, but since the stroke my mother is scared of cars. So I park my car at the library and walk with the books in the cart the half mile to her house"
I didn't know what to say, and "I'm sorry" didn't seem appropriate. So I bowed my head and said "thank you sister". As much as I get on people for acting like they have no sense, it was really humbling to see someone who gets it--that "me" isn't the only person in the world.
Girl, I don't know your name or anything about you really. But please carry on. We need more of that in our world.
Instead she looked me straight in my eye and told me that she wasn't looking for money but could tell thats what I thought by the look in my eye. She'd had money shoved in her face all week since she started walking with her cart and had encountered all kinds of attitudes and strange looks. I was so shook that all I could do was ask what she was doing.
"My mother had a stroke and has been pretty much reduced back to the level of a child. She likes it when I read to her, so I go to the library twice a week and take out a bunch of books and go to her apartment and read to her until she falls asleep in my lap. I'm not homeless, I've got a car and a job and enough to eat, but since the stroke my mother is scared of cars. So I park my car at the library and walk with the books in the cart the half mile to her house"
I didn't know what to say, and "I'm sorry" didn't seem appropriate. So I bowed my head and said "thank you sister". As much as I get on people for acting like they have no sense, it was really humbling to see someone who gets it--that "me" isn't the only person in the world.
Girl, I don't know your name or anything about you really. But please carry on. We need more of that in our world.
3 Comments:
What a touching story. It's good to hear about people like that who contribute to society.
It is also great that you shared her story.
There are more of us out there doing good and great things than most people can imagine.
One can only hope!
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