Son: Something Picked Up

The homeless man picked up the lid of the trash can gingerly, sure not to make a noise so that no one would notice him. He reached into the trash can, pulled out a half-empty pop and toop a deep swig.

All of us sitting on the short wall watched in horror.

Not seeing our disgusted stares, he set the pop down slowly, picked the lid back up and put it onto the can. Grabbing "his" pop, he started moving away with eyes downcast as if to disapppear into the background of the city.

Strange, I thought, he thinks he's being discreet.

SMACK.

I saw the pop bottle go flying across the street, the top coming off and the cola spraying onto the rain-drenched asphalt. The homeless man was staring, stunened, at his empty hand whilst a roundish black woman loomed over him. She was only half his height, but her stature dominated the scene.

"That's disgusting, man!" She was digging furiously into her oversized handbag hanging off one shoulder. She wore a scrube top with Care Bears on it. Hm, I thought. She thrust her hand out and push a wad of bills into the man's hands. "Go buy yourself something .... Shi-eeeet."

She walked paost him, tennis shoes pounding the pavement, one arm clutching her bag strap, and the other swinging almost wildly in rhythm with her steps. He was stunned for a moment -- his crazed eyes reading someone noticed me... -- before moving on himself.

I stopped the lady. "That was the nicest thing I've ever seen done." I was already plotting how to pay the good deed forward.

"Man, shoot. That was disgusting. I was gonna vomit if he dran'anymore." And off she went.

---

Later that night, I was back on the short wall with a cigarette. No one was out there.

All the trash lids were off. Apparently, he's only that precise or that careful when other people were around.

I picked the lids up and put them back where they came from.