A true story

The evening sky gently squeezed the remaining light from the day. It was dark before 6 PM… The see-saw like temperatures landed on Winter and the restless wind rustled the remaining leaves from their hiding places. And the rattling storm windows in this 100-year-old house were again familiar. The bitter cold, gusting winds, and early darkness took away my normal enthusiasm for my evening walk with Abby, our Golden Retriever. The cracked and broken sidewalks have always been a challenge to navigate. However in the dark of night, covered with snow and ice, and illuminated with an occasionally street light, the task was made more challenging.

The icy fingers of bitter cold air nipped at my face and gloveless hands. Abby however never appeared to be bothered by the cold. I glanced at her and smiled. She was dressed in her brightly colored knit sweater. I make a game of putting it on her and when I slip it over her head and It “magically” appears again I kiss her forehead and say “there’s my pretty girl”. At times it looks like she is rolling her eyes at me… By now we’re half way through our walk when in the distance I could see a dark lump in the road. My first thought was that a large part of a snow bank got knocked over into the road by the town plow truck. I stopped and stared for a moment to get my eyes focused while Abby anxiously pulled at her leash urging me to move forward to that spot. I took a few hesitant steps and stopped again.

Abby continued to pull. Her body language said that it was okay to proceed. In fact it was now apparent that Abby was drenched in enthusiasm and that there was nothing to worry about. My eyes finally adjusted to the dimly lit roadway and I was able to make out the shape of a person hunched over in a knelling position. Their head touching the frozen, black pavement. For a moment I was frozen in time. I had a flash back to a picture that hung on the wall of our kitchen when I was a child. It was Jesus with his outstretched arms. The nail holes showing in his hands. Under his picture were the words: The will of God will not lead you where the grace of God cannot protect you… I looked at Abby and stepped forward cautiously navigating the icy, broken pavement. I now realized that I was looking at a young man that had fallen in the road.
Hey, are you okay? Do you need help? And like a toy with worn out batteries his head slowly looked up and he tried to talk. His words were so slurred that I couldn’t understand him. Hey, are you okay? Do you need help? Again in slow motion he answered, but I still was unable to understand. I reached out with both hands and he instinctively grabbed them. To my surprise his hands were warm, and they were covered with hard, coarse calluses. And he was strong. So strong that he almost pulled me down on top of him. I braced myself and pulled again. Together we wobbled around as if doing a difficult dance move for the first time. Somehow, we managed to keep our balance. He appeared to be in his late twenties and was dressed in an Army jacket that had large blood spots on it. His jeans were black and his work boots that were so worn the leather was missing from the tops of the toe area. The street light caused the protective steel toe plates to shine.

Are you okay? I tried again to communicate with him. He pointed to the side of the road where I could see a Mc Donald’s bag that was his dinner a short while ago. The remains of his Chicken Mc Nuggets were scattered over the roadway and side walk and what appeared to be blood on his coat was the dipping sauce.

My adrenalin was starting to wear off and I again felt the cold… Do you have a place to sleep tonight? His slurred speach made it hard to understand. However I was able to determine that he was headed to the South end of Torrington. Do you need money? In a jumble of words, I was able to understand that he was asking for change. I pushed my now numb, frozen hand deep into my pocket and handed him a worn and wrinkled $10 bill. He looked at me and for the first time I could understand him. “I asked for change,” he handed the money back to me. I told him that it was okay and encouraged him to keep it to replace the dinner that was splattered in the road. He looked at the money and lifted his head. Our eyes locked and I saw a small child hidden there. A child that carried pain and fear. Thank you! He startled me…. Thank you for your kindness. All I could say is “you’re welcome.”

He asked for directions to the South end and I turned and pointed explaining that it was over a mile away. He said he would manage. I wished him good luck and encouraged him to stay out of the road and on the sidewalk because of his dark clothing. We parted ways and I heard a loud, clear voice ring out: I love you brother. I yelled I love you too. And I prayed for the child within him: May you be happy. May you be healthy, may you live in peace no matter what you are given –