“Bad news isn’t wine. It doesn’t improve with age.” Colin Powell
If you’re anything like me, you watch the news for the weather and ignore most of the rest. “If it bleeds, it leads” is not too far off. I have absolutely NO intention of having heated discussions, political or otherwise, on this blog. There are plenty of other forums for that kind of thing. Periodically, I plan on sharing some of the good I observe in my day to day life and I hope you find it a refreshing distraction from the day to day STUFF that we see, hear and read every day. Now, on to the Good News of the day…
My commute to the office is a short one-less than 10 miles from my front door to the office. I’m usually out the door by 7 and at my desk by 7:30. My commute to work, thankfully, does not involve interstate driving so I can see what’s going on in the neighborhoods I’m driving through. There’s a guy out walking his dog-a nice sized Rottweiler who tries to “get” my car every time I drive by. He just wants to play and it makes me laugh every time I see him. Almost every day I see the same man and the same woman out for their morning run. Not together, but running the same sidewalk and getting it done before the nasty summer Georgia heat gets too unbearable. Then there’s the guy I’ve come to calling the Trash Guy…
Trash Guy is not a young man, but he’s not especially old, either. He’s got short curly hair that has more gray than blonde in it. He’s dressed as if he’s ready to go on a hike-floppy hat to keep the sun off his neck & head, cargo shorts, plaid cotton shirt, crew socks and what the Brits call “trainers” but we call tennis shoes whether they’re for tennis or not. Anyhow…he’s carrying a backpack and using a large walking stick.
The reason I call him Trash Guy is because he’s out most mornings picking up the trash on the side of the road. I don’t know what motivates him, but he sees a need and he’s filling it. I don’t see him every day, and I miss him when he’s not there, hoping it’s just because he’s decided to take the morning off and not because he’s ill or has some other trouble in his life he’s had to deal with.
I’ve often thought of stopping when I see him, rolling down the window, and shouting my thanks to him. I haven’t done it yet and I don’t really have a good excuse except to say that I’m driving and I have to watch for what is going on around me. I will promise you this, though-when a good opportunity presents itself I will stop and say, “hello” to him. I will ask his name and I will thank him for looking out for his neighborhood. I have no idea if he knows someone has noticed him and what he’s doing but he should be told his efforts are appreciated. I’ll report back when I have a chance to speak with him.
Be well and God Bless…until we meet again.
