|
|
 |
A Homeless
Woman's Sign (?)
By Mona Lease
Hi, all!! I was leaving McDonald's last Sunday. A woman - maybe 60ish -
was at the exit at the edge of the sidewalk. She was holding a sign.
The sign read: "Homeless. Will work for food or money." She looked at
me as I read her sign. I looked the other way. The thoughts going
through my mind will surprise you as much as they surprised me.
How did a woman - of obvious age - become homeless? Did she fall for
the "credit card" game? Did she fall for "everyone has" - the internet,
a cell phone, a home phone, car, - all the stuff that proves we've
"made it" in this world? What caused her to become homeless/jobless? On
any given day of the week at least 5 businesses are hiring on Wagner
Avenue. McDonald's is hiring as I pen this. It is on their marque. She
was standing a half of a block away from their marque. Can she not
read? Did she write the sign she was holding? What went wrongly? Does
she have no family or friends - no one that cares??
The first of the Presidential Debates went well (smirk!!). More sandbox
activity. We heard Hillary say she was sorry for the nasty "email
dilemma"...her hubby did a lot of apologizing when he was in office. I
expected an apology from her. Trump sputtered a few of his usual things
- when he had enough time to do so. News reports say Hillary sounded
"cued, rehearsed, and robotic" I wouldn't go into a high-profile debate
unrehearsed either. Nothing was gained here. I expected this, too. It
seems like we've heard all of this previously. How did the debate get
this way?? How did we - as a country - get to where we are?
Then I wondered: "Have we given away the very thing that will save us -
might help us - might point us in the right direction?"
I had a call other day. It seems the woman is tired of cleaning up
after her aged Mother. She said she was going to have a breakdown. The
woman does not work. In the beginning the Mother could see to her own
needs with ease and dignity. Ten years later that is not the case.
Nothing was prepared in advance. If the Mother goes into a nursing home
- the family home will go up for sale....with the money going to the
care facility. The daughter said she does not care about that.
Especially in these times of "shifting sands" - "If we don't pay
attention to what the people we have determined are "nursing-home
worthy" - what are we going to do?" This woman has lived through
WW11, a recession, and the price of car fuel increased by at least 10
times. She lived through mandatory auto insurance and the invention of
the helicopter when she was 5.
At 6 years old she saw the invention of the color television and
aerosol spray cans when she was 7. Cake mixes hit the shelves when she
was 15. Valium and non-dairy creamer were a '60's contribution to make
life easier - nicer in our daily lives. In 1969 the artificial heart
and bar code scanners were introduced for longevity and added ease. The
'90's gave us the smart pill (anti-conception pill for those
unscheduled "meetings") and digital answering machines (we screen our
calls to avoid the "unwanted" ones to this day).
John Boehner resigned as Speaker of the House. He had been pressured to
push for deeper spending cuts. He believed in "preserving the
institution" and all the back-biting and deeper spending would not do
that. He was not afraid to stand up for what is right and speak out
against what is wrong. He was in Piqua, Ohio to see and speak to small
business owners who were "going under" due to government mandated
employee insurance coverage.
As rocky as it all looks - Hillary wanting guns gone from citizens'
hands -Trump wanting a wall built...apologizing to the Mexicans, etc -
when we relegate those we deem "too much work" or "beyond our
capabilities" - (I've seen hospice go into nursing homes twice) - are
we throwing away the very people who could help us? What did we ever do
before the smart pill, hair spray, digital answering machines, and cake
mixes???
Remember the kiddies and our service people. Take good care of the
furry and feathered ones out there. Be safe and healthy. See ya next
time. Ever Toodles!! MONA
|
|
|
<
|
