Ninety-Nine Cents and a Smile
It was a Mr. Goodbar. It cost me 99 cents, and it brought a smile
to his face. That was my repayment.
My friend, George, the recipient,
used to come into the place where I work.
He was my age, a quiet-spoken man, who moved slowly and shyly through
life. I’m not sure of his education
level. All I know is he worked at a
minimum wage job before his illness.
His health deteriorated. He needed help in a lot of ways, and his
steps crossed my steps. So, I helped in
a few ways.
The first thing I did was help
George get signed up for his Social Security benefit check. He didn’t seem to be aware that this was his
to claim. What timing, for his job
played out and his last paycheck coincided with his first benefit check.
And then the health issues
came. I’m not sure all that was wrong,
but enough that he had to be put in a long-term-care facility that would accept
the amount of money his benefits allowed.
His niece told me about this
and said, “George would love to see you sometime.” And so, I went.
We had a short visit, I found
out more about his condition and we set about drawing up a Power of Attorney
naming the niece with the power.
That’s when the Mr. Goodbar
came up.
On my next visit, we executed
the documents, and I gave George his Mr. Goodbar. His smile said it all. He was a man of few words, and fewer
expressions, but his smile thanked me.
He didn’t put me in his will,
or give me a tip plus gas mileage. He
thanked me. That was enough.
I do what I do sometimes simply
because a fellow human being needs a helping hand. I can’t heal him, I can’t pay his bills, I
can’t give him a haircut or shave him, but on that day, I could give him a
delicious candy bar that he enjoyed as if it were a prime steak.
P Michael Biggs
Offering
Hope
Encouragement
Inspiration
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