God blessed you ...

It rained, without stopping, for three days this week. Which makes my trek to school unpleasant when I have some hope of having cute hair, but perfectly lovely when I have already given up on my hair and am wearing my rainboots. So during three days of rain, I wore my rainboots one day, I did my hair one day, and I stayed inside one day. Good compromise, I thought.

My usual commute goes like this:

12 minutes: Walk to the Metro
2-8 minutes: Wait for the Metro
10 minutes: Ride the Metro
8 minutes: Walk to school

Going down the escalator at my Metro station, I usually see a homeless man sleeping between the outside edge of the escalator and the cement wall. This week, he had a birthday balloon tied to his cart. I wondered if he had tied it there himself, or if someone had done so while he slept.

At the top of the escalator at the Metro station at school, I see people selling sunglasses or umbrellas, depending on the day, and of course, my favorite, flowers. They sell the flowers rain or shine. I like that. Down the street from the Metro station this week, I saw another homeless man. He held the traditional cardboard sign, but with a difference. His said, "God blessed you." An important -ed. I saw him first on a sunny day. I thought about him all day, and the next. And then the rain started. But there he was again, in the rain, without an umbrella. I had a $10 bill tucked carefully in my backpack pocket with my student ID card. I keep it there just in case I need cash. I kept it there.

The next day, the one where I did my hair but did not wear my boots, I had a few one dollar bills. This time, I would not be sorry. But this time, I did not see the man with the sign.

My problem is that I am only partly a skeptic. I am skeptical enough to keep my hand in my pocket, but believing enough to pinch myself for being selfish. I am not really sure if birthday balloons mean a birthday or a scheme to guilt me into giving. I always think of the homeless man outside the bank who wore a different coat every day of the week.

The plan behind the sign did not matter to me this week. It might just be good for business. He might not believe in God. But he made me notice him, even from the shelter of a yellow umbrella and a half-formed fast-walking smile. He made me think ...