Sunday, February 7, 2010

young people with no coats

A few years ago, I stumbled upon a young man hunched down on the ground at a bus stop. I decided to go get gas and see just how cold it was out there before figuring out what to do about him. He seemed so cold. As I pumped my gas, the wind howled, and I realized we were in the thick of it. Rather than take my usual way home, I turned the corner to see if he was still there. Sure enough he was in tears as his bus had not yet arrived. I turned into a parking lot, opened my trunk, and started pulling out gloves, jackets, scarves, and ran to him. Ever since then, I keep supplies in my trunk. Last week, I was driving home from work, and there was a young man walking down Hunt Club Road. Hunt Club has no protection and it was windy that day. He had no coat on. It was too late for me to stop, so I turned all the way around the entire neighbourhood and went running after him in the street with a scarf and jacket. I looked like a crazy woman running in the street flailing a scarfe, but what the heck. What was up with that???!!! I asked myself. The very next day, I'm in my car again driving to go see my children who were visiting from out of town. Still in the suburbs, I notice a young man sitting at the bus stop, once again wearing no coat, no gloves, no hat! I still have stuff in my trunk...I yelled out the window, Can I give you a jacket and scarf? I thought for sure he'd be a punk. But so very politely, he answered thank you very much. He made no excuse for sitting at the bus stop on the coldest day of the year with no coat on; I didn't ask. I'm not sure how many more of these young people I will find this winter, but suffice it to say, I have re-supplied my trunk!

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