Texting and multitasking? Glued to the smart phone? Texting can be a time killer, but it can also be a source for inspiration. One day I was inspired by a simple text.
Walk Away or Listen?
The story involves an old man who wants answers. How often do we just walk by when someone on the street wants us to notice them? Do we walk way or walk towards someone who appears to be in need? So often we think it’s not my problem so we don’t get involved. Then there are safety concerns also. What can we do? If nothing else, you can listen, give a kind word or a smile.
Food or Companion?
“Do you know if it’s legal to snare rabbits around here?” the old man asked as he lifted his face to see a young man who walked towards the road.
The man stopped in his tracks and thought, “Who’s talking to me.”
Then he heard some rattling of paper or plastic, and turned around. A man with a grey shabby trench coat stood up and straightened his back. He fumbled into a plastic bag on the bench beside him. The young man watched him grab a black glove out of the bag. Now his curiosity was triggered, “What’s he doing?”
“I’m not sure.” He walked closer to the bench where the old man kept shoving some things into a paper bag.
“Why?”
“I want a pet to keep me company.”
“Well, you could get pets at pet stores or pet shelters. I’m sure they have rabbits also.”
“Did you know that a cooked rabbit tastes just like chicken. It’s lean meat.”
The young man lifted his eyebrows and stared at the man. He wanted to hunt rabbits for food and not for companionship!
“One rabbit can feed one or two people.” the old man remarked with a straight face!
The young man observed another black garbage bag behind the bench with a tattered blanket under the bench. Was he homeless?
“Well, you could try to walk over to the government building and ask around where you can get answers to you questions.”
The man’s face showed no reaction so he tried again.
“You could also search the internet for rules about hunting rabbits.” The words melted into the snow as soon as they left his lips as the old man gazed back with a blank stare!
“Does he know how to use a computer?”
He continued ransacking in his bag. He lifted another black glove, and pulled it on his bony fingers. At least his fingers wouldn’t freeze in this cold weather.
The trees were void of leaves and the legislature grounds were covered in snow. It was getting cold so he pulled up his collar as he realized one thing: the man was probably homeless and mentally ill.
The man continued to ramble on about loving animals and not killing them. Yet he wanted to trap rabbits for food!
With the wind whipping his hair the young man strolled away with a renewed awareness for people with many issues. But as an animal lover himself, he wondered if he should root for the old man or the rabbit! LOL
“Thanks bud for talking to me.” uttered the old man.
A true story inspired by my son who stopped and talked with a stranger on the grounds of the Manitoba Legislative Building in Winnipeg.
What’s your funniest text?