Sunday, November 27
The Rest of The Night
Thanksgiving, 2005 (cont.)
I spent the rest of Thanksgiving afternoon driving around Minneapolis, looking for our friends who maybe didn’t get inside for a Thanksgiving dinner.
It was so COLD that afternoon, and there were very few people out on the streets. The homeless I usually see must’ve found a warm place serving a meal; better yet, they must have found a warm place inside to sit, preferably for a couple of hours. When it is so danged cold outside, and you are so danged homeless inside, finding a ‘leave-me-alone’ warm place to sit is almost more important than finding family or friends, even if it is a Holiday – even if you had a family.
Well, I had found Willie that Thanksgiving holiday. And, Willie had found me. Together with our friend, Scott, and my dog, Beau, we found an out-of-the-wind place where we could set up a propane stove to heat up our soup.
As the double boiler spit and bubbled on the stove, I prayed that we would find Willie a refuge for that night. I hated the thought of having to drive Willie back to his jungle home, only to leave him at a frozen heap of rags for a bedroll. I’ve often wondered if it’d be fun driving an old city bus converted with bunk beds. I could pick up a bunch of our homeless friends at the end of the day, drive out to the nearest Interstate rest stop and park all night so everyone could use the public restrooms. Hum? Sounds like too much fun, eh? Or, maybe something that belongs in a ‘Ten Year Plan’ to end homelessness.
Well, God does provide an answer to prayer. And that Thanksgiving day, God provided Willie with a friend who knew of a guy who heard of an abandoned trailer parked in some vacant alley. At the end of our route, I found the abandoned trailer and I dropped off Willie and his friend and the propane stove. It was dark before Beau and I finally got home.
I sat alone with my pups for the rest of the night. I thought about Willie and I hoped he wouldn’t burn himself up in that old, abandoned trailer. I prayed that if I found Willie the next morning, that I’d find him warm … especially because I know he’s already froze his feet once before. And once you’ve froze yourself, little things like toes and fingers turn funny colors and fall off when they get too cold. And top that with all the pain and the loneliness that comes from being homeless …it would hurt enough to make a grown man like Willie cry.
Most nights, I cry for our friends like Willie. But I only cry on the inside.
¶ 6:00 PM
Thanksgiving, 2005 (cont.)
I spent the rest of Thanksgiving afternoon driving around Minneapolis, looking for our friends who maybe didn’t get inside for a Thanksgiving dinner.
It was so COLD that afternoon, and there were very few people out on the streets. The homeless I usually see must’ve found a warm place serving a meal; better yet, they must have found a warm place inside to sit, preferably for a couple of hours. When it is so danged cold outside, and you are so danged homeless inside, finding a ‘leave-me-alone’ warm place to sit is almost more important than finding family or friends, even if it is a Holiday – even if you had a family.
Well, I had found Willie that Thanksgiving holiday. And, Willie had found me. Together with our friend, Scott, and my dog, Beau, we found an out-of-the-wind place where we could set up a propane stove to heat up our soup.
As the double boiler spit and bubbled on the stove, I prayed that we would find Willie a refuge for that night. I hated the thought of having to drive Willie back to his jungle home, only to leave him at a frozen heap of rags for a bedroll. I’ve often wondered if it’d be fun driving an old city bus converted with bunk beds. I could pick up a bunch of our homeless friends at the end of the day, drive out to the nearest Interstate rest stop and park all night so everyone could use the public restrooms. Hum? Sounds like too much fun, eh? Or, maybe something that belongs in a ‘Ten Year Plan’ to end homelessness.
Well, God does provide an answer to prayer. And that Thanksgiving day, God provided Willie with a friend who knew of a guy who heard of an abandoned trailer parked in some vacant alley. At the end of our route, I found the abandoned trailer and I dropped off Willie and his friend and the propane stove. It was dark before Beau and I finally got home.
I sat alone with my pups for the rest of the night. I thought about Willie and I hoped he wouldn’t burn himself up in that old, abandoned trailer. I prayed that if I found Willie the next morning, that I’d find him warm … especially because I know he’s already froze his feet once before. And once you’ve froze yourself, little things like toes and fingers turn funny colors and fall off when they get too cold. And top that with all the pain and the loneliness that comes from being homeless …it would hurt enough to make a grown man like Willie cry.
Most nights, I cry for our friends like Willie. But I only cry on the inside.
¶ 6:00 PM
