After depositing a check in my account, I walked out of the bank thinking about all the money I didn’t have. A couple of steps farther into the walk, still thinking how much it sucked, I captured the image of an eagle nosed lady with twisted legs and a hunched Quasimodo back. My eyes were weary and puffy, perhaps caused by the heat of the summer afternoon. I stopped to catch my breath. Leaning on the walls of the nearest building, I turned my head slightly to the left. I had to confirm what I had just seen because part of me could not believe that in the middle of Madison Avenue something of that nature could be unfolding. That lady was rummaging through a gigantic pile of garbage. She was frantically breaking all the plastic bags and collecting the foods the restaurant had just thrown out. Just thrown out? Really? For all I know the decayed and disgusting cuisine had been in the garbage for a few days already. Who knows!
I stayed on that wall fighting off the tears which rushed into my eyes. I was just thinking and silently trying to sort things out. I was contemplating life’s uncertainties and unfairness. Finally, I screamed out. “Shit, there is something wrong with this picture!” I looked again and the lady was still frenetically going through her precious cargo loading bread, ziti and other pasta dishes into her hand container and a long plastic shoulder bag.
One of the restaurant’s employees came out to reprimand her actions. I was still too far to hear the actual conversation but the body language was enough for me to know he did not approve of her breaking all those plastic bags. At this point, I pulled off the wall and immediately reached into my pocket. I found a $20 bill. In fact, it was the only $20 dollars I had. I headed to confront the insensitive employee and to offer all the money I had to this “needed lady”.
I had just walked a few steps and the employee took off in the opposite direction.
The lady started to walk my way. I stopped discreetly and waited for her. When she was close enough, I pulled out the $20 bill and held it in my hands. She passed by my side still carrying on her left shoulder that clear plastic shoulder-bag filled with bread. On her right hand she carried that greasy and saucy pasta container.
As we locked eyes, I could see her pain but failed to see her deeply rooted pride.
“It’s for the birds!” She said.
I looked at her and replied, “Excuse me?”
We walked side by side for a few seconds. That’s when I extended the $20 bill to her. She looked at me like I had three eyes. There was no hesitation in her response and definitely no flinching in her actions. Her face remained expressionless for a few seconds and out of her mouth only a few words came out to calm what she thought was a condescending act on my part. “I don’t need it! I am fine!”
I insisted that she take the $20 bill; but she walked away from me. A few minutes later, I was sitting at my desk baffled and thinking about the moral to this story.
© Daniell Fedrón August 24, 2007
All Rights Reserved
