All About The Subway
He sat there, on the curb, unsheltered from the bitter wind. His oversized brown coat and baggy trousers barely hid his skeletal body. His gray, greasy hair and dirty beard could not hide his sapphire blue eyes. His sign said, “Homeless and hungry. Anything will help. God bless you.” For several weeks he’d been a fixture there on the corner where people turn toward food, warmth and more goods than anyone could possibly need. I’d seen him as I whizzed by but was never in a location to offer him anything from the safety of my car. You know what I mean...can’t just reach out and hand something so you tell yourself it’s ok to ignore and go on. God will understand.
Just a few days before my latest “viewing”... and let’s be honest, that’s what I was doing...viewing this man like a piece of scenery...just a few days before that I’d been listening to a podcast about leaning in, about encountering others and about looking them in the eye. It struck a deep chord within me...to get close enough to look someone in the eye is to risk an encounter that can change. Jesus did it. Dare I?
In my head were all those voices warning me about “getting too close.” You hear them too I bet. “It’s not safe!” “What if he tries to rob you?” “He could be carrying disease.” And the other voices warning me that he’ll waste my gift on booze or drugs so that is cause enough to not give the gift. And then the voice from the podcast...to refuse to look someone in the eye is to dehumanize them and dehumanization is the first step toward marginalization and a slippery slope all the way to annihilation.
I entered the warmth of the store and purchased lots of food. Fighting the bitter wind, I put it all in my car, grumbling about how cold it was as I returned to my shopping cart. As I got in and started the car, I glanced toward where he’d been sitting, silently hoping he was gone. But there he sat, nearly frozen in place, an uncomfortable part of the scenery pock-marked with dirty snow drifts.
The internal battle was raging, but I stopped, took a breath and remembered Jesus’ words: What you do for the least of these you do for me.
So I drove my car closer, picked up one of the Subway cards my husband and I both keep in our cars for just this purpose, parked and got out of the car. I walked up to this man with the sapphire eyes, and with startled warmth he greeted me. “Hello!” he said with genuine surprise. “Hi!” I said back, all the while looking into those startlingly beautiful eyes. “Here. This is for you. Go inside where it’s warm. Get yourself something to eat. Thaw out!”
Gently he took the card and warmly smiled. Before he spoke, I could see his gratitude. But more importantly, I could see his humanity...created in the image and likeness of God, beloved of Christ. And while I hope he got warm and had some food, what happened to me there in that eye-to-eye encounter was that I met the Lord face-to-face. He said, “God bless you!” I said, “He has.”
It really can be that simple...all about the Subway card and the risk to look another human being in the eyes. And there will be Jesus, looking back.
