A
woman stood gazing down upon the filthy man laying in the
gutter.
The man slowly looked up. This was a woman clearly
accustomed to
the finer things of life. Her coat was new. She looked like
that she had never missed a meal in her life. His first
thought was that she wanted to make fun of him, like so many
others had done
before.
"Leave me alone," he growled.
To his amazement, the woman continued standing. She was
smiling --
her even white teeth displayed in dazzling rows. "Are you
hungry?"
she asked.
"No,"
he answered sarcastically. "I've just come from dining
with the president. Now go away." The woman's smile became
even broader. Suddenly the man felt a gentle hand under his
arm. "What
are you doing, lady?" the man asked angrily. "I said to
leave me alone."
Just then a policeman came up. "Is there any problem,
ma'am?" he
asked.
"No problem here, officer," the woman answered. "I'm just
trying to get this man to his feet. Will you help me?"
The officer scratched his head. "That's old Jack. He's been
a
fixture around here for a couple of years. What do you want
with
him?"
"See that cafeteria over there?" she asked. "I'm going to
get
him something to eat and get him out of the cold for
awhile."
"Are you crazy, lady?" the homeless man resisted. "I don't
want to
go in there!" Then he felt strong hands grab his other arm
and
lift him up. "Let me go, officer. I didn't do anything."
"This is a good deal for you, Jack," the officer answered.
"Don't
blow it."
Finally,
and with some difficulty, the woman and the police officer
got Jack into the cafeteria and sat him at a table in
a remote corner. It was the middle of the morning, so most
of the breakfast crowd had already left and the lunch bunch
had not yet
arrived.
The manager strode across the cafeteria and stood by the
table.
"What's going on here, officer?" he asked. "What is all
this. Is this man in trouble?"
"This lady brought this man in here to be fed," the
policeman answered.
"Not in here!" the manager replied angrily. "Having a
person like
that here is bad for business."
Old Jack smiled a toothless grin. "See, lady. I told you
so. Now
if you'll let me go. I didn't want to come here in the
first
place."
The woman turned to the cafeteria manager and smiled. "Sir,
are
you familiar with Eddy and Associates, the banking firm
down the
street?"
"Of course I am," the manager answered impatiently. "They
hold
their weekly meetings in one of my banquet rooms."
"And do you make a goodly amount of money providing food at
these
weekly meetings?" "What business is that of yours?"
"I, sir, am Penelope Eddy, president and CEO of the
company."
"Oh." The woman smiled again. "I thought that might make a
difference." She glanced at the cop who was busy stifling a
giggle. "Would you like to join us in a cup of coffee and a
meal,
officer?"
"No thanks, ma'am," the officer replied. "I'm on duty."
"Then, perhaps, a cup of coffee to go?"
"Yes, ma'am. That would be very nice."
The cafeteria manager turned on his heel. "I'll get your
coffee
for you right away, officer."
The officer watched him walk away. "You certainly put him
in his
place," he said. "That was not my intent Believe it or not,
I have
a reason for all this."
She sat down at the table across from her amazed dinner
guest.
She stared at him intently. "Jack, do you remember me?"
Old Jack searched her face with his old, rheumy eyes "I
think so
-- I mean you do look familiar."
"I'm a little older perhaps," she said. "Maybe I've even
filled
out more than in my younger days when you worked here, and
I came
through that very door, cold and hungry."
"Ma'am?" the officer said questioningly. He couldn't
believe that
such a magnificently turned out woman could ever have been
hungry.
"I was just out of college," the woman began. "I had come
to the
city looking for a job, but I couldn't find anything.
Finally I
was down to my last few cents and had been kicked out of my
apartment. I walked the streets for days. It was February
and I
was cold and nearly starving. I saw this place and walked
in on
the off chance that I could get something to eat."
Jack lit up with a smile. "Now I remember," he said. "I was
behind
the serving counter. You came up and asked me if you could
work
for something to eat. I said that it was against company
policy."
"I know," the woman continued. "Then you made me the
biggest roast
beef sandwich that I had ever seen, gave me a cup of
coffee, and
told me to go over to a corner table and enjoy it. I was
afraid
that you would get into trouble. Then, when I looked over,
I saw
you put the price of my food in the cash register. I knew
then
that everything would be all right."
"So you started your own business?" Old Jack said.
"I got a job that very afternoon I worked my way up.
Eventually
I started my own business that, with the help of God,
prospered."
She opened her purse and pulled out a business card. "When
you are
finished here, I want you to pay a visit to a Mr. Lyons.
He's
the personnel director of my company. I'll go talk to him
now and
I'm certain he'll find something for you to do around the
office."
She smiled. "I think he might even find the funds to give
you a
little advance so that you can buy some clothes and get a
place to
live until you get on your feet And if you ever need
anything, my
door is always opened to you."
There were tears in the old man's eyes. "How can I ever
thank
you," he said.
"Don't thank me," the woman answered. "To God goes the
glory.
Thank Jesus. He led me to you."
Outside the cafeteria, the officer and the woman paused at
the
entrance before going their separate ways "Thank you for
all your
help, officer," she said.
"On the contrary, Ms. Eddy," he answered. "Thank you. I saw
a
miracle today, something that I will never forget. And...
And
thank you for the coffee."
~~~~~~~~~~~
If you have missed knowing me, you have missed nothing.
If you have missed some of my emails, you have missed a
laugh.
But, if you have missed knowing my LORD and SAVIOR, JESUS
CHRIST,
you have missed everything in the world.
Have a Wonderful Day
And May God Bless You Always;
Submitted
by: Ramon H. MacFarlane, Sr. RC
Thiensville-Mequon RD 6270 (SE Wisconsin, USA)