He Ain't Heavy...He's my brother...

Day one of my two weekdays of commuting. I am an open book for the most part and I am also always open to speaking to people, finding out who they are...what's their back story...what they do or did...I have always been this way. Last night, as part of my "get-fit-take-care-of-yourself-so-you-can-live-to-be-99" wellness resolution, I carefully packed my healthy breakfast and even healthier lunch. Lucky me -- full fridge, lots of choices. I wake up in a warm bed to the smell of fresh coffee, take a shower, brush my teeth, ponder my attire as I browse my closet, accessorize and then Ron drives me to the station. Yes...lucky me. And lucky Aqui (translation: "here" in Spanish, "I am" in Arabic...so "Here I am"...per, Aqui, the gentleman in the photo above.)

Last week I had a nicelong chat with Charles who is the maintenance man in the Asbury Park train station and who has begun to fill the station with luscious green plants of assorted varieties. Charles is a gardener with, it seems, a green thumb. He brings some plants, passengers bring others. Sme are healthy...some are trying hard to stay alive. Charles has a real green thumb and I get the backstory on each and every plant. How they got there, the condition they were in and how they're doing now...but he needs pots and stands. So, although I forgot to bring them this morning, I have put aside some lovely pots for him. Friday, I tell myself, I'll bring them Friday. To make sure I really do bring them Friday I put it into my calendar on my handy iPhone. But back to Aqui...

I notice Aqui walking from person to person clearly looking for some money. He makes his way over to me and I politely say I don't have money. But I do have food...would he like food? Aqui smiles and says, yes, that would be great. I can tell, by his breath, that he's been drinking...yesterday, last night, this morning...who knows when...but he's close to sober now. So I look into my bag and give him his choice of yogurt, fresh fruit, cheese and crackers, veggies and dip or a pear. He opts for the yogurt. Along with the yogurt I give him a spoon and a napkin and then we get to chatting. He was in the armed forces in Vietnam...only 7 years. I tell him my husband was a pilot in the Air Force during that same time and my brother-in-law is career military. I told him about my blipfoto journal and asked if I might take a picture of him. He asked me to give him amounted so he could freshen up. This is Aqui, freshened up after telling me that I was his spiritual gift today. But really, he was mine...he made me thankful for all that I have and thankful that I am not the kind of person to skulk away and not look him in the eye. Thankful I had my "portable larder" from which to share. And then, the most amazing thing happened...people who had turned him away started to come over to give him a bit of change, a dollar bill and a smile. We sat talking, Aqui and I, for another 5 minutes before my train pulled into the station. His mother's Mercedes floated away with Sandy...his sister's house filled up with water right into the living room. God is funny, Aqui tells me...I ain't figured him out yet!