This is my second post having to do with the homeless. Is it a trend? Nope, I just ride the train a lot...
You ever see a homeless person on the train all bundled up, fast asleep? You ever wonder if that person was actually asleep, or just pretending to be asleep? I didn't, at least not until recently.
Rushing to catch the train--as I often find myself doing, I had little time to choose the right train car. The right train car; a train car with available seating, no crazy individuals, and no foul-odored homeless inhabitants. Just my luck, the train I picked did indeed have an available seat, but next to a homeless woman. This particular woman was stretched out in her sleeping bag in the corner seats of this train. She looked quite comfortable, she made this particular train look like home. My original thought when I first saw her was to cover my nose, but I then realized there was no apparent odor. In fact, upon taking a second look at her, she didn't seem like a typical homeless person.
All of her belongings looked somewhat new. Her coat wasn't tarnished or tattered; her sleeping bag was fully intact, and like said, there was no usual eye watering funk in the air. As the train surged throw those New York City tunnels, I continuously observed this "homeless" woman. I thought to myself "Man, she is knocked out...it's like no one else is around her". During my observation, I happen to catch her sniffle. Looking closer, I noticed a tear roll down her cheek. Damn.
It was then I noticed that she wasn't sleeping-but why pretend? I began to think maybe she was embarrassed to be sleeping on a crowded train with all her belongings. I figured to avoid the cold stares, and disapproving glances, she simply pretend she was asleep. I thought about how many times I noticed someone homeless sleeping, and wondered if there was a chance they were resorting to the very same tactic this young woman was implementing. I once again re-examined her appearance. Everything she owned wasn't brand new, but it wasn't ragged either. Maybe she was on her "first day of homelessness"
I remember this comedian talking about how he once fell asleep in a ritzy hotel lobby. He said he just dozed off while waiting for a friend. Suddenly, someone from the hotel staff approached him and informed him that loitering was prohibited and the homeless weren't allowed on the premises. "I was wearing a nice shirt and tie" the comedian exclaimed. "Why would this guy think I was homeless just because I was napping...was it because I'm black?" The comedian then went on to say "What homeless person wears a shirt and tie", then he had a thought. "Maybe a homeless person on their first day of homelessness would be wearing a shirt or tie". His point, people who are homeless don't just start out their homeless stint looking disheveled.
This young woman with her average, middle class looking appearance made me think of what the comedian said about being on your "first day of homelessness", maybe this was her first day-maybe this was her first night sleeping on the train too. I wondered what her story was, why did that tear glide down her cheek ALMOST unnoticed. Did her parents force her to leave the nest?, did her significant other leave her in these cold streets independent of a warm shoulder? I often find myself in deep thought focusing on the reasons behind a life of destitution. What did this person do, or not do, to wind up sleeping on a train? I wondered "Maybe she's not even homeless" Maybe she had a long train ride, and happen to have a sleeping bag handy. This doesn't explain the tear, nor does it explain her reasoning behind pretending to be sleep. Who knows? My stop came...I got off.
Life goes on...
Peace!!!
