My favorite Thanksgiving
We all have favorite memories of the various holidays.
Usually they revolve around tradition, or family. Years ago, I stopped trying
to do the family thing, or gather at specific holidays. I got to the point that
I would rather spend the holiday alone, rather than go through all the stress
that the holidays usually mandate as “something that we are supposed to do.”
I have a very wonderful memory of a Thanksgiving that began
as one that I would purposely NOT Participate in. As November 2001 approached,
there were the usual invites to join assorted family at other family-members’
houses. I made it a rule to almost always politely decline these invitations.
No matter how many times I explained why these gatherings were not a good place
for me, it did not seem to matter. Every time one of these gatherings was
planned, they seemed to think I would want to join-in. As the month went on, I
successfully wriggled my way out of having to attend any of these.
Sometimes, the accomplishment of having succeeded in getting
away from the pressure of the invite, was quite rewarding. I was quite pleased
that only a week before Thanksgiving, I had managed to steer clear of every one
of the bombs lobbed at me in disguise of holiday invites.
I was living in Gresham, Oregon. Thanksgiving time, for many
years was not something I felt happy about because that was when I had gotten
married... And Divorced. This particular Thanksgiving was the one-year
anniversary of the end of my marriage. It was exactly one year prior that I had
walked away, and gone to live in my van. I chose to live in my van during an
ice storm in Oregon, rather than stay in that bad situation. I had applied to a
couple of apartments, but at the Holiday season, none of the processes were very
fast. After two-weeks living in my van in the ice, and cold, I got this
apartment.
Now it was one year later. I had gotten to know many of the
tenants who lived in this complex. I was happy to choose this apartment for a
couple of reasons. Some of those reasons included location, cost, and ease to
get into. I was aware that this was not exactly the best neighborhood, but at
the same time it was not the really bad part of town. It was convenient to my
work, and by comparison, it was quite nice, compared to some of the other
options I had to choose from. When you are homeless, sometimes, any place you
can afford is a good option. Many of my neighbors were not there by choice. It
turned out that this complex was mostly state-funded housing. Those who were on
state-aid, or in state-run programs did not have much choice in where they
lived. They were often given two choices, and The choices were: 1- Take it. Or
2- Leave it. Most chose to take what they were given, so they could remain in
the system. Needless to say, having a job, and earning an income was something
most of the tenants were not doing. Most were put on state-disability, and then
told they could not work, or they would lose their benefits. It was a horrible
system, and a vicious cycle. The state managed to keep people down by
forbidding them to actually attempt to earn an income, to possibly better their
lives.
Many of my neighbors were extremely nice, caring, and
wonderful people. They were poor, but they did not act like that was what
defined them. I was poor, too. I was working long hours just to afford to pay
the bills I was left with after my marriage. I was living in a really cheap
apartment, because all my income went to the debts I was saddled with in my
marriage. Similarly, I was not any different than any of the tenants on the
state-run system. I had the privilege of having earned a really
decent income previously, so I knew the difference. I was currently living
poorer than I ever had in my past. But that did not mean I had to act in a bad
way. I still upheld my quality of life. I still always helped those I could
help. It did not always take money to help others. As I got to know my
neighbors, I found some amazing friends. The lack of money, job, or status,
never once created a single divide between those who worked, and those who did
not. The complex had 30-units, and I had
gotten know many of my neighbors.
Just like any other home I have ever had, I always had an
open-door policy. Everyone knew that if they needed help, needed an ear to
bend, needed a safe place to escape to, needed a bite to eat, needed anything
at all, they could come to me. I welcomed anyone, and they knew that as long as
they were not dishonest, or disrespectful toward me, they were always welcome. If
I was home, Anybody could walk-in anytime, no questions asked. When I was home,
My door was always unlocked. Everyone knew God was the keeper of my house, and
all who entered, also entered His house. It was never expected that they also
believe, or even acknowledge God even existed. It was expected that they Knew I
trusted God, and that was all that mattered. Not a single person ever did wrong
to me or my home. Being able to help others has always been a cornerstone of
who I am.
A few months before Thanksgiving a lady moved into the unit
upstairs from me. Her name was Lori. From the moment she moved-in, she had
desires to make me her boyfriend. I made it clear I was not interested in
having a relationship. We became pretty good friends, and she always hoped I
would give-in. This was actually kinda funny to watch how much she would work
to try and impress me, to win me. I never fell for any of it. But still, she
was fun, and friends was as far as I would go with her. In early November, she
tried every approach she could think of to get me to join her for a traditional
full thanksgiving meal in her apartment. Hers was one I politely declined. She
was appalled at the company I chose to allow to enter my home, and made her
views known to any who would listen. If she happened to be at my home when
another showed-up, she would leave. She at first attempted to get me to have
the other leave. It did not take long to teach her where I stood. The idea of
helping these people was appalling to her. I often explained that I would be
willing to see more of her, if she was willing to not be a heartless bitch. She
understood this, but was set in her ways.
By trusting in God, and allowing those who he sent to my
home to come freely, no questions asked did indeed have many wonderful rewards.
Along with the rewards, there were also many times when I was suddenly in the
middle of events, or situations I could have never imagined possible. It was
not uncommon to wake up to find a complete stranger asleep in my hammock in the
front room. I often would come out of the shower, and find someone standing
there who I did not know needing a safe place to be. There were times I would
wake to find someone depositing a baby next to me to be kept safe through the
night. I had a guy knocking on the door one night, and was kinda bothered that
someone would knock and wake me, rather than just walk-in. I opened the door,
and was facing someone I did not recognize, and he handed me a gun. Turned out
he lived in another complex, but had heard about me, and wanted to turn the gun
over to me, so he would not harm somebody. He told me he did not walk-in,
because he feared he would do wrong inside my home, and he respected who I was,
and what I did too much to enter. I did not ask any questions about the gun, or
who he was. I Did ask if he was alright, and if he needed anything. He said he
would be alright, now, and asked that I turn the gun in to the police. The
police also knew me, and knew what I stood for. I could walk into the police
station with the gun, turn it over, and they would not ask further questions. I
could call the police for help when someone was battling some drug-side-effect
that I did not understand. Everyone knew that if I involved the police, they
would not be in any kind of trouble, but would be helped by the police. The
police understood my tactics. I worked to keep my neighborhood as safe as
possible, and was well-known. I found people would come to me with their drugs,
and ask me to flush them. They wanted someone they trusted to take care of it
for them. Not all of the apartments had bathtubs. Some only had showers. It was
not uncommon to have someone pop-in just to use the bathtub. Often, I would be
reading in my hammock, and someone I barely knew would walk in, climb into the
hammock next to me, lean against me, and instantly fall asleep. When they would
wake later, I had already gotten out of the hammock, covered them in a blanket,
and gone to bed. They would realize they were safe, and stay sleeping there
until morning. If people who lived
together had a fight, and one left, they usually ended up at my place. When the
other person had calmed-down, and was ready to play nice, they would come and
find the one who fled safe at my home.
 |
Ummm, Perhaps your todler might not
wish to view this Thanksgiving feast...
|
One of the most unexpected surprises that happened in that
complex was Thanksgiving 2001. As Thanksgiving week arrived, I started
realizing that most of the tenants did not celebrate, or even recognize
Thanksgiving. They did not think they had much to be thankful for. They could
not afford to do a special meal. They did not have any place they were invited
to. They did not have invitations that they could choose to decline. To most of
them, it was a day that only rubbed their noses in their already bad
situations. Some mentioned they could go and get a food-box that was designated
especially for this holiday. But they did not like being treated as a
publicity-charity-case. Some were offered full turkey-dinners if they would
first come and serve at the organization’s function. They felt they were being
made fun of, when these wealthy functions used them as servers, just to say
“look how good we are for taking these people in”.
I was kinda caught off-guard. I had a choice if I went where
others were gathering. They did not. I chose to be alone, they were stuck being
alone. This really tore at my heart. I wanted to do something that would show
these people what they truly had, but did not understand. I had already planned
to have a take-n-bake pizza from Papa Murphy’s for my own Thanksgiving. And I
was going to bake my cookies. My cookies are special in their own way. Many of
these people had already enjoyed the magic of my cookies. The more I thought
about thanksgiving, the more I really wanted to give a Thanksgiving to the
entire apartment complex. I knew without a doubt what I wanted, and needed to
do. I needed to give them a Thanksgiving… JOn-Style! I would feed them pizza,
cookies, pie, coffee, and brownies! I would do this in my own apartment,
open-house-style. It would be open from 8 am until 8 pm. Everyone could come
when it was comfortable for them. They could bring others with them, too. I
needed to have enough pizza for the entire complex! But I knew I could barely
afford my own pizza, let alone two, or twenty pizzas! I already had the
ingredients for one batch of my cookies, but I would need to make four batches!
I could not afford that. I had planned to have one Marie-Calendar’s Razzleberry
pie, but I could not afford three or four. I certainly could not afford the
soda pop, or coffee to feed close to a hundred people.
Then the idea hit me! I would ask for donations! Not money,
but food. Just like any place that feeds people on Thanksgiving. I knew I would
be able to do this! I went to the local police department to ask for contacts
that could help with this. They were more than happy to help. The police
already knew what I stood for, and how I loved to help. I was assigned the
community-relations officer as my contact. I would go to the local vendors, and
hand them the letter showing his involvement for added credibility. I then went
to the apartment manager to get him involved, too! He was already well-liked,
and an active part of this complex’s happenings. He also wrote a letter for me
to take along. Then I went to Papa Murphy’s Pizza, and met with the manager.
She was so impressed with this that she called the owner, and had him come
right down to meet with us! They liked the idea so much! Now it was my turn to be impressed! They not
only agreed to donate the pizzas, they also added the soda-pop, and
cheese-sticks, too!
I then went to The Fred Meyer store just down the street.
Every single one of the tenants shopped at this store. I met with the grocery
manager. He then had me meet with the general manager. Freddies agreed to
donate the several pies, the coffee, and brownie-mixes. They suggested they would
also contribute fruit, cheese, and veggie trays, chips, dips, paper plates,
napkins, and cups, too! They asked if there was anything else I needed to pull
this off. I was overwhelmed by their generosity, and hesitated to ask, but
decided to go for it. I mentioned that I could not afford to get the
ingredients to make all my cookies. They gave me a twenty-five dollar gift
certificate so I could buy all of that!
I was so excited! I went back to the Police Officer, and
told him all the good news. He just smiled, and then said “I know. They called
to tell me how excited they were to be able to help their neighbors, and
absolutely love your spirit!” He said there would be more surprises to come,
but would not elaborate.
I then went to visit the manager. I used his computer to
create a flyer to hand out to every tenant. We printed one copy from his
printer. He then took them to the property-management company’s office to print
up a hundred-copies in assorted colors.
I handed out the copies to every tenant, and also left a
second copy for them to give to someone else they knew who could use a
blessing. The flyers made it clear that it was totally-free, no-obligation,
no-strings-attached. It was a come-as-you-are celebration. All ages were
welcome. Even their relatives were welcome. We also made it clear that this was
not in any way connected to the owners, or property management of the complex.
We made it clear that this was just what I wanted to give them. The flyers also
gave special thanks to Papa Murphy’s, and Fred Meyers. The flyers listed all the food and beverages
that would be served. The flyers made it clear that it did not matter if I knew
them, or not. Everyone was welcome, and I f I did not already know them, I
would soon. It was made clear that all they needed to do was show-up. It was
not even mandatory to be sociable.
I took some flyers to Papa Murphy’s, and to Freddies, and
made arrangements to pick up all the food Wednesday evening. Then I dropped some flyers off at the police
department.
When I got home Tuesday evening, I was greeted by Lori, the
love-struck-neighbor upstairs. Lori had a copy of my flyer in her hand, and was
insisting this would never work. I had already learned to ignore her ideas of
what she insisted could not work. Then she shoved another flyer into my hands.
This one was advertising her own traditional turkey dinner that she would make
available to any and all on Thanksgiving Day. Her flyer stated that “If you do
not want to settle for pizza, come upstairs to get a Real Thanksgiving meal.”
This gave me quite a laugh. She got upset with me for laughing, but then asked
me to explain why I found it funny, and why I disagreed with her. I explained
about how I have connected with everyone here, I understand them. I KNOW the
traditional Turkey Dinner is a Sore subject for them, just like it is for
myself. Pizza is casual. Pizza is celebratory. Pizza crosses every social
divide. Pizza is a stand-and-eat food. Pizza is happy. Pizza is finger food.
Pizza makes everyone happy.
I encouraged her to go ahead and hand out her own flyers,
but to change the wording, so it sounds inviting, and welcoming. And advised
her to embrace my offering to the masses, rather than try and make it sound
second-rate, or she would quickly have a lot of this complex against her. I
explained that she already looked down her nose at most of them, and with that
approach, even if they were starving, they likely would not go to her home,
just like how they won’t go to the churches, etc.
She understood this. I finally got that point across to her.
She came downstairs later with a new flyer, and asked if I would help her hand
them out, and introduce her as we went to each door. I was very happy to join
her now. We handed out her flyers. Almost everyone greeted me with a hug when
they opened their door, said they were happy to finally meet her, but would be
having pizza. Many of them asked if she would come and join them for pizza.
This surprised her. They politely declined her invite, but then turned and
asked her to come and join them for the pizza. By the time we finished the
whole complex, she had learned quite a bit about these people, and my approach.
A few people said they would have both meals.
Wednesday night, I went and gathered all the pizzas, food,
beverages, plates, etc. I had already arranged with the manager to bring an
empty fridge over to my apartment that evening, so I could store it all. We put
the spare fridge in my bedroom, and loaded it to the gills!
I went to bed early that night, so I could be up early to do
all my baking, and get everything set-up. I got up at 4 in the morning Thanksgiving Day.
When I went out to the front room, there were two young ladies asleep on my
living room floor. I could not see their faces, so I was not sure who they
were, but I was used to this sort of thing happening, so I just left them
asleep.
I made coffee, then went to shower. While I was showering, they each
came in, used the toilet, and left. They did not say anything, and looked like
they had each had a hard night, and were struggling to function. I had seen
each of them around the neighborhood previously, but did not know who they
were. When I was done with the shower, and came out, they were gone. They had
each left a duffel bag in the corner, and there was a note for me. It said
“Thank You! We will be back to eat later.” This was something that had become
normal in my life, and it made me smile.
I put on some good music, and got started with my baking. (Cookie
Dough makes a wonderful breakfast!) I had mentioned in the Flyer that the open
house would begin at 8. But everyone always knew my door was always open.
People started coming by just after 6. They helped themselves to fruit,
veggies, dips, cookies, and coffee.
 |
| My Famous Cookies! |
My Mom was heading from Portland to Bend to
spend the day with her mom (My Gramma). My Mom stopped by in the early morning
on her way out of town to get some of my fresh-baked cookies for the road. (She
knew they made a wonderful breakfast, too!) She took several in baggies for
later enjoyment, and sharing with Gramma.
Just before 8, I put the first pizza in the oven. Lori from
upstairs came down to get some items she needed to finish preparing her
traditional meal. Right at 8, the first one to walk through the front door was
the Community Service Police Officer. He helped himself to coffee, and cookies.
Then a couple of minutes later, the two young ladies who had slept here last
night came in. When they saw the officer, they each hugged him, then looked at
me and smiled. He was grinning. Then he said, “You are wonderful, Jon!” He then
introduced the two girls, and told me a little of their story. He had brought
them to my place during the night, so they would be safe. They were 17-year old
young ladies, homeless, and tended to settle for anything that would take them
off the streets for a night. He had a long history with them, and happened to
see them climbing into a car of people last night that he knew would lead them
to drugs, and they would be harmed before the night was done. He stopped the
car, and came up with reasons the two girls could not go with them. The girls
were then taken to my place. He told them the rules, and told them if they
stayed and did not go wandering during the night, he would help them get off
the streets. I offered them food. They were eager to accept. They seemed like
they had not had a safe environment for quite some time. Their clothes were not
real clean, and looked like they had been worn for many days. Their hair was
matted, and messy. I asked them a few questions, to learn how to best help
them.
I called the manager, and asked him to come over. The
officer already knew him too. When the manager arrived, I introduced the girls,
and asked if he could pull some quarters out of the laundry machines. He
grinned, understanding where I was headed with this. He left, and went toward
the laundry room. The officer looked quizzically at me. I just smiled. I asked
the girls if they would object to having a hot shower, and clean clothes. The
officer was still looking like he was confused. The girls’ eyes lit up! I
pulled some sweats and sweatshirts out of the closet for them to put on.
They
emptied out the dirty clothes from their duffel bags, stripped, and put on the
sweats I had offered. The manager
returned with a handful of quarters. Then the officer realized what we were up
to. One girl headed to the shower, and the other one helped us gather their
clothes. I got my laundry basket, and soap. While one went to shower, the other
went with me to wash the clothes. The officer stayed with the manager. When we
returned, other people had started showing up. I put more pizza in the oven,
and everyone was happily talking. The girl disappeared into the bathroom with
her friend. While the second one was showering, I transferred their clothes to
the dryer.
When I returned from the laundry room, The owner of the Papa
Murphy’s had arrived. The Officer, and Manager both already knew him, so they
were all chatting. Lori from upstairs had also come down, and joined in all the
excitement. When the two girls emerged from the bathroom, they were greeted by
many people all talking excitedly at the same time. The girls looked a bit
overwhelmed. As all this was happening, many people were coming and going, and
my apartment very busy and slightly chaotic. Lori offered to take the girls
upstairs where it was a little less crowded, and they could relax without all
the commotion. This shocked both the manager, and myself, because we both knew
how Lori looked down on people such as these girls. They went upstairs. Among
all that was going-on, The Owner of The Papa Murphy’s was handing out coupons
to each person for a free pizza. They were truly free, nothing needed to be
purchased, just a free pizza. He explained how impressed he was with how much I
wanted to give these people the best thanksgiving they had ever had, and wanted
to make it even better.
After a while, many had come and gone, and said they would
come back throughout the day. The officer was happy to meet every one of them.
Not a single one of them flinched when they saw the officer in my apartment,
because they knew my relationship with them was a good thing. They also were
able to see that they could relax, and even enjoy being around an officer. Many
asked his advice “off the record”, and he was very willing to help them.
When the girls’ clothes were done drying I brought them
back, folded them into piles for them to sort, and put away as they saw fit.
The girls came back down for more pizza, and soda. They beamed with enthusiasm
about what was happening. The officer pulled them aside and spoke quietly with
them. When the girls disappeared into the back to put their own clothes back
on, the Officer, Manager, and Papa Murphy’s owner disappeared upstairs to
Lori’s apartment. When the girls came back out, they asked me about Lori. I was
not sure what exactly they were asking, so I asked for more clarification. They
were excited, but looked a little unsure. Then the Officer came back down and asked
to talk to me alone. It turned out that Lori had offered the girls a place to
stay in her apartment. He did not know Lori, or her intentions, so wanted my
opinion. I was shocked! Had Lori’s hardened shell been cracked? The officer
told me how the girls needed a safe place where they would be treated with
respect, and not made to feel inadequate. I knew Lori well enough that I knew
she could be a loving caring sweet person when she wanted to. I also knew Lori
was safe. The Manager, and Papa Murphy’s owner were still upstairs. The officer
liked what I said about Lori, then grinned. He had the girls go back upstairs
with him.
As the day went on, there was good fun, good cheer, good
food, and plenty of things for everyone to find to be thankful for. When everyone
finally came back downstairs, the two girls did not. Lori smiled, gave me a
hug, and thanked me for opening her eyes. The Officer shook my hand, and
thanked me, then left. The Papa Murphy’s owner handed me a stack of the coupons
to hand out, and told me to make sure every one of them was given away. He
shook my hand, thanked me and left. The Manager ate some more, and said he
would be back later. When it was calm, I asked Lori what was up? She just
grinned, and said she would let the girls tell me. So I asked where they were.
She said “Asleep upstairs.” Then she hugged me again and left.
Lori was spending time with many of the tenants in my
apartment, and enjoying their company. She was beaming, and I really wondered
what she was up to. The girls came downstairs after their nap, and were hungry
again. Lori asked if they would like some turkey, because it was about to come
out of the oven. One girl wanted the turkey. The other wanted pizza. Some of
the people in my apartment decided to go have turkey. So, Lori took many
upstairs to serve her traditional meal.
The girl that stayed downstairs looked like she wanted
something to occupy her mind. I showed her the bookshelves. Her eyes lit-up. She
found a book and snuggled into the hammock.
After about an hour, all the people that had gone upstairs
came waddling back down. Lori was happy, and had learned how to connect with
her neighbors. The other girl joined her friend in the hammock, and they shared
the book.
Later in the afternoon, The officer returned, and behind him
was The Papa Murphy’s Owner, along with the Papa Murphy’s Manager. She had not
yet come to join the festivities. She was introduced all around. She helped
herself to a slice of pizza. A little while later the General Manager, and
Grocery Manager from Freddies showed up. The Officer was beaming as he
introduced them all around. I was surprised! I never imagined these folks who
donated so generously would come and visit me! Everyone was enjoying this
Thanksgiving, and they all wanted to make sure I understood how proud they were
of it.
The two girls were introduced, then the Officer asked Lori
if they could all meet upstairs. So Lori, the two girls, The Officer, Both Papa
Murphy’s people, and both Freddies people went upstairs.
When they came down again, they all stopped in to thank me
again, and left. The General Manager of the Freddies gave me another
twenty-five dollar gift certificate. He said this was for my own use, and his
way to thank me.
The girls came back down later. They ate some more, and
looked like completely different people than they did at 4 this morning! They
looked safe, comfortable, and alive again. I was dying to know what was going
on with all the meetings, but would wait until they decided to tell me. As
Evening came, many of the early arrivers came back for more. Some of the people
who had been peeking out their windows all day at all the activity finally
ventured on over. I baked cookies, pies, brownies and pizzas all day long. This
was The Absolute best Thanksgiving!
Finally, as late evening rolled around, I made sure to send
large amounts of food home with each person so I would not have tons of
leftovers. I always manage to make the kitchen a complete disaster when I am
baking. Usually, I clean it all up before the last cookie comes out of the
oven. But this day, it was still a disaster, because I had gone non-stop all
day. I had been going solid for 16-hours. The two girls offered to clean it all
up, and suggested I relax in the hammock for a bit. They were sincere, and
looked like they had waited all day to be able to give back after having been
given so much today. I usually do not let others clean up for me, but this time
I agreed, but made them promise they would tell me what everyone was so excited
about involving them. They agreed, but said I needed to rest, and they would
tell me later.
Almost as soon as I lay in the hammock, I was out-cold! I
did not hear another sound, until my alarm clock went off the next morning. I
was disoriented. I was in my hammock, with a blanket over me, but my alarm
clock was in my room by my bed. Once I stumbled around and shut it off, I went
back to the kitchen to make my coffee. Then I realized what I had missed. As my
coffee was brewing, I turned on a light. The house was spotless! The kitchen
was cleaned, the trash was taken out, the food was all put away. Everything in
the entire house was as if there had not been a huge party here yesterday. I
could not believe it! Nobody ever got my place as clean as I would, but it was
spotless! I knew there would be one place that had been missed. The toilet. It
is one of my pet peeves, and I cannot stand when others make a mess in my
bathroom. But for yesterday, I ignored it, and allowed everyone to use it. The
last time I saw it, it was a complete disgusting mess. But it was actually
clean! The girls even cleaned up the bathroom last night! Now that I was
thoroughly shocked at how clean those two girls made everything, I realized
they never told me what was going on. They were not here, and the duffel bags
were gone.
I was kinda confused, but had to get ready for work. I
showered, and cleared my head trying to grasp what happened upstairs, and still
in awe of how much the girls cleaned when they insisted I rest. They even put a blanket on me, and turned out
the lights before they left! As the hot water did its thing, I began to reflect
on what a wonderful day it had been. I left for work happier than I could
recall in many years. All day I wondered about the girls, and what happened.
Then I finally remembered that I was told Lori had offered them a place to
stay.
When I came home from work, Lori’s lights were on. I went
into my home, and showered, figuring I would go upstairs afterwards. Before I
got out of the shower, Lori, and the two girls were in my apartment and trying
to get me to hurry up so they could tell me everything. Lori would never go
where she might see anybody naked, but the girls had already figured me out,
and were very comfortable around me.
The girls did not care that I was in the shower, they piled
into the bathroom, and were both talking at the same time, and were so excited.
They both continued to tell of what happened simultaneously, and kept saying
how I changed their lives, and how they would always be sure to tell everyone
about how important Thanksgiving is! I was the only one not clued-into what was
happening all day yesterday. But, now they were spilling it all out faster than
should be possible. I heard it from both of them, both talking really fast, and
excited, and at the same time. The echo in the bathroom, and the running water
made it even more hilarious. It was kinda fun as I put the pieces together. I
finished showering, and went to the bedroom to get some clothes. Lori had been
waiting just out of sight of where I was in the shower. When I entered the
bedroom, she got all flustered and ran into the front room. The girls laughed,
and only then did they connect that they had barged into a naked man’s bathroom
while he was showering and not even asked if it was a problem. They stopped
talking for half a second, giggled a bit, then waited until I finished putting
on some clothes to continue telling all that happened.
It turned out that Lori had offered them a place to stay.
But by the end of yesterday, they would not need her place. They would stay
with Lori until Monday. Monday they will enter a teen-housing program where
they will be safe, and have access to resources for finishing their education.
One of the girls got hired at Papa Murphy’s, and the other one got hired at
Fred Meyers. They both hugged me and thanked me. I congratulated them for being
in the wrong company the night before. They got the joke. Lori asked what that
meant. Lori had not heard all of those details. Lori was quite used to finding
strangers inside my home, and never asked how they arrived here.
The girls told the story to Lori. It was fun to listen to
them tell all about how my home is perceived by the police department. They
explained how they thought the officer was pulling their leg when he explained
where he was taking them after he picked them up. When he parked in front of
this apartment, they began to believe him. They expressed concerns about being
dropped-off in a man’s dark apartment, but The Officer assured them this was
not a normal man, and they would be perfectly safe. He showed them the flyer
about the Thanksgiving day festivities, and they decided he made a good choice
in bringing them here. He even walked them to the door, opened the door and let
them in. They explained about how much trust that showed to have my door
unlocked while I slept. The Officer told them to go in, lie down and go to
sleep. They did exactly that. They said they slept solid until I came out and
started the coffee. They heard the
shower start, and both had to pee really bad, so decided from what the officer
had said, it was safe to go use the toilet while I was showering. They also expressed how when I offered to
give them clean clothes, do their laundry, and let them shower, they did not
hesitate a moment to strip and get out of their filthy clothes. They both
laughed as they said they could tell they embarrassed the Officer by doing
that, but noticed it did not embarrass me. They also mentioned they noticed I
did not even flinch when they walked in while I was showering. (I have written
before about my nakedness, and openness, especially when it comes to showering.
For some reason if people see me showering it never bothered me, even when I
was at my “hiding everything” phase, such as I was during this event.) Lori
Blushed at the mere mention of this. She made it a point to Never see a naked
human, and just the thought of it embarrassed her.
The girls continued telling everything that had happened in
the past day. The details they retained were incredible. While it appeared they
were half-dazed and partially checked-out, they were really paying attention to
every detail of everything that happened yesterday. Lori was a bit overwhelmed
with all the details. I loved it! They would say some tidbit they had noticed
about me, and Lori would ask how they learned that, because she had been trying
to figure out everything about me for many months. This made me chuckle. Here
were two scared, homeless, troubled teens and they happened to grasp more of
their surroundings than Lori did. Lori looked at them with a look that said she
could learn a thing or two from these ladies.
We gave each other hugs, and I offered them some pizza. This
made everyone laugh. Lori actually wanted pizza! We had pizza, cookies, and
pie. They went back upstairs for the night.
I could not plan to make a Thanksgiving as wonderful as this
one. Everything always happens for a reason, and I just have to remember to
trust God, and Let Him work through me.
I Hope Your Thanksgiving was something to be thankful for.
How many things have you got to be thankful for? I have more than I could list
in a lifetime!
Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Jon~=:-)
Even though I do not get traditional long holiday weekends, I still managed to find plenty of time this Thanksgiving weekend to get some much needed writing done. The funny part is, This year, I worked Thanksgiving Day, Then had Friday and Saturday off, then again worked on Sunday. Today is Sunday, and the end of the long weekend for most people. I wrote this one on Saturday, but did not get a chance to post it until today. I am really glad I got the chance to post it as a wrap-up to another wonderful Thanksgiving!
I have mentioned before that I write these mostly for my own benefit, but finding out that they help others, too, makes it even more rewarding! That is what I thrive on... Helping others. When I learn that having written about an important event in my life somehow touched even one other person, I know my time spent was more than worth it!
Again, I Thank you for stopping by, reading, and hopefully laughing, too! I Hope your day is blessed, and there is always an open-door when you need a safe place in life. ~=:-)
I knew it was Renee J I pretended not to notice, and went for my
last nekkid swim of the week. When I came up for air, I could see her peering
and smiling from above. I gave her a wave. She waved and smiled, then looked
over her shoulder to see if anyone had seen her watching. Then she went around
the corner again. I swam back to my shorts, climbed out, put them on as I did,
and dried off before heading upstairs.
