The System
Scott had a system. Most of them did, and would share what worked best in different parts of town at the shelter over turkey and gravy or chili dogs and off-brand corn chips. He would time the light if he was on an unfamiliar corner so he knew how much time he had. Then, he would hold his sign facing the line of cars waiting for the light for 1/3 of that time. Next, he would walk up the row of cars closest to him, trying to catch eyes as he went along. When he did, he would smile and nod. In his head, he was saying “Hello! Hope you’re having a great day!” Of course, no one could hear his thoughts, but he hoped his face communicated something along those lines.
Most eyes stayed glued to the phone in their hands or on the rear view mirror, but once every three or four light cycles someone would smile back. At about the same frequency, someone else (usually not the smiling one) would roll down a window and offer a couple of singles or a bottle of water. There were also business cards with offers of work, and lots of religious tracts detailing the home he had waiting for him in heaven. He didn’t like to be rude, and he wouldn’t throw trash on the ground, so he put everything that didn’t spend in a pocket in his backpack made to hold a cell phone and threw them away the next time he passed a trash can.
At the end of his time at the corner – he would only stay for two hours at any given location – he usually had enough money to get a proper meal and a few bottles of water to keep in his backpack. If he was really flush, he’d splurge on a scratch-off ticket and a candy bar. On his last day in St. Louis he won $250 on a scratch-off and was able to spend 24 hours lying in a queen-size bed in his briefs watching cable while his clothes were being washed by someone downstairs named Rita. He also bought a new pair of jeans and a pair of Air Jordan’s at a Goodwill before heading west toward Springfield. That payout was enough to keep him optimistic there would be others.
Copyright 2019 – Laurie Marshall
This piece is being posted as part of the #100dayproject. Find out more here.
