touch the heart of the one in need next to you

if you can't do the good you want to do
at least do the good that you can

i can't be in louisiana, or mississippi too
can't help the people there
and though i'm offering to take in someone who lost a home
i don't know if they will let me
'cause i don't really have the room
and even if i did
i would have to petition my friends for funds
for me to feed and clothe another
(i know my friends; this they would do)
i feel helpless as i look for ways to give a hand
to the part of you and me now hurting and in desperate need

i was out early this morning
for my daily fitness walk
when upon my return i saw a homeless man
i often see him in the distance
across the street or down an alley
and i thought to myself
if i can't be in louisiana or mississippi too
then at least i can touch the heart
of the one in need next to me
so i lingered on his side of the street
didn't cross until he passed me by
i dislodged my music from my ears
i stopped to say hello

he is gaunt and drawn
with most of his teeth now gone
to some he looks quite like a drunkard
or perhaps a mental kind
(but i know better)
i stopped to say hello
his face brightened
he said hello too
what a beautiful day, i offered
it's gorgeous, he replied
and such low humidity too!
i smiled back at him
and then he said to me
kindly, like a father
...he...said...
all this walking that you do
this exercise for you
is making you fit
and you are looking really good

i had never known he had noticed me
much less, that he had cared
his compliment
humbled me
he made my day
and as i walked away
i began to cry

photography by graham jeffery