When I first passed by, I noticed that he was not your
“typical” panhandler. He was in that typical busy location, and he held a sign
but that is where the similarities ended.
At first glance, I couldn’t quite read his sign but from
what I could tell it did not ask for anything what so ever. I went about my
morning, business as usual, but the sight of this man kept creeping back into
my thoughts. I was drawn to him for some reason. I had no idea how to approach
him but could not resist the urge.
Nervous and unsure of
what I was going to say, I pulled my truck to a near by location and just sat
there for a few minutes. I could see him but still could not read either of the
two signs he held. Then I saw him wipe the sweat from his brow, and I knew that
I had my opening.
I got out of my truck and retrieved a bottle of water from
the ice chest in the back of my truck, and mustered the courage to approach
this man. Commenting on how hot it was going to get today, I handed him the
water and we exchanged greetings. His name was William, and he was from Montana
Something deep inside of me was pulling to know more about
this man so I asked him what he was doing. It was at this point that I was
finally able to read each of the signs that he held in his lap as he told me
his story. Here was this humble soft spoken man just trying to spread a little
peace and love. You see his signs asked for nothing but were just simple
reminders of the good in the world.
As we talked, another man stopped in the busy intersection
and asked me to give William some money for him. As I took the money from the
man and walked back over to William, I felt no shame at all. He told me that
people occasionally gave him money and that was ok because he did not eat as
often as he should. The money helped. However, his reason for being there was
not to collect donations, but to give to anyone that he could a little good
feeling or some hope. Hope for mankind and hope in the world was exactly what
William was giving me today.
Albeit soft spoken, this man had a powerful presence. His
spoken words rang loudly in my ears even over the busy traffic. He spoke of
good in the world and the good in people. I felt compelled to tell him about my
children and my fears as a father of raising boys in this world where evil and
hatred are still so prevalent in today’s society. William assured me that I was
on the right path. “The youth are our future,” he said, “and we must guide them
accordingly.”
I asked him if his circumstances were different how his life
might be different. He told me that the only thing that might chance if he had
legs was that he would have a job. You see William has no legs, and is in a
wheel chair.
As our time came to a close, I again shook his hand and
thanked him for sharing his time and his story with me. I fought back the
desire to take his picture, sitting there in that wheel chair and holding those
signs. I wanted to make sure to remember him, but soon realized that I would
never be able to forget. God put William in my path today for a reason and the
lessons learned from him will forever stick in my heart.
Today I added another name to the list of people for whom I
run. I met a man today and his name is William.
