We were walking into the Santa Rosa Central Library when Elliott dropped a jelly bean out of his pocket and started freaking out and shrieking. Of course, it then took a lot of convincing to get him to leave the jelly bean there and continue on our way (why does it always have to be a huge ordeal to go anywhere with your kids?!). For some reason, the library tends to attract a lot of homeless people in Santa Rosa and we attracted the attention of one of those fellows.
"What's wrong with him? What'd he drop?", the man asked me as he started digging through his pockets.
"He dropped his jelly bean." I said, and smiled (you know, the "Oh, kids..." smile).
"Here," he said, taking out some change, "he can buy some more candy."
"Oh no, that's ok. Thank you, though." I laughed.
"No, really, I always would have wanted someone to give me money when I was a kid." he said.
He seemed bent on the idea and waved off my protests as he handed Elliott some change and asked him a question. He couldn't understand what Elliott replied (which was really just Elliott still talking about how he dropped his jelly bean, which wasn't what the guy asked him at all), so he handed him some more change and helped him put it in his pocket...
What exactly just happened? Shouldn't he be asking us for money, instead of giving it to us (that is, if he really was homeless)? The more I think about it, the more puzzling and strange it seems. He was one of those people who just seem a little off. But why does doing a nice thing seem so strange nowadays? it is always a little bit weird when strangers approach you. It's like we're trained to harden our hearts against anyone we don't know--to be closed minded and keep our eyes in front of us and not look around at anybody around us. Normal people don't just approach one another. That's normal? How sad.
Maybe it's this guy, and people like him, that really have it figured out. Take away your home and comforts and distractions of pleasure, and what do you have left? People...the people around you that have been there all along.
But, I digress. What do you think?
1 comment:
yeah, i always think it's weird when people approach me that I don't know...and then I remember that they're human beings. just like me and you, we are what physically connects us all to each other, ya know, the whole 5 degrees of separation thing. it is obviously important to God, since he refers and reinforces that the church is made of people and not traditions or a building. i agree with you, it shouldn't be strange...unfortunately i feel weird when people i know approach me, so i'm kinda a lost cause...
[kyle]
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