Mike... going somewhere in his place

Over the last several months I have been running into Mike. The first time he was on Line 14. It was fairly full that day. The one seat available was next to someone who wore an old brimmed fishing-type hat, his dress was haggard and he seemed like he could be a little thin on the dollar side.   He was reading what looked like a very old Bible... like the Gideon Bible you would find in old motels. I asked him what he was reading. He said Proverbs. Proverbs is good I told him. He spoke slowly and chose his words slowly. As we were getting off the bus, I asked him his name. He said Mike. I told him to keep reading That Book, "it will serve you well."

At another time on Line 14,  I saw Mike again, this time across the aisle. There he was reading that old Bible. It was red with a hardcover, and small type in columns. What are you reading today I asked. “Proverbs,” Mike said. “Proverbs ... there's a lot of practical wisdom there,” I said. “Stick with it, and good things will come your way.” I told him.  “I like Psalms too. They were written by a great warrior and are encouraging for people in battles.”

A week or so passed. When  I got on 14, I was sitting at the back on the side seats. The person on the back row spoke to me. He asked, “Aren’t you  the one I talked to about reading the Bible and getting my life back together?” “Oh, yes, you’re Mike.” He said, "well, I am about to make some changes. Soon I will get back to where I need to be." For some reason he felt he needed to let me know this. Something about our brief conversations struck a chord in his thinking and he was getting ready to commit to an improved  lifestyle. He never shared the specifics, but he seemed to be on the verge of a turning point in his life.

Some more time passed, then I saw something very unusual at the terminal. Someone was laying motionless on the pavement just across from the terminal. A security guard was there and a police officer came up. I walked closer and I saw another person dressed in unkempt attire kneeling next to him with his hand on this motionless person’s side. As I got closer, it looked like Mike. He was on one knee, leaning over this young man laying there.  It seemed like Mike’s lips were moving. It was a very touching scene. An ambulance then came by to attend to the young man.

Later on, as I was walking down the street by the small hamburger place just up from the terminal, there was Mike. He was reading another book, with a Spiritual theme, also with some age on it.  I told Mike  I saw him kneeling over a young man laying on the street across from the terminal last week. “Were you praying for him?” I asked. “He had a seizure...  I was trying to comfort him.” Mike answered in his hesitant, low graveling voice.

Now Mike was starting to get my attention. He was not embarrassed to help this young man when at the terminal; some people seem to stay their distance from others. The story of the Good Samaritan in the Bible came to mind. Most avoided the person injured on the ground but one person stopped to help him. That day Mike was the Good Samaritan. It got to me as many of us just choose to not get involved. He showed more care than most and was oblivious to anyone else around him.  Mike didn’t care what others thought, he cared more about the well-being of the person who was hurting and laying on the pavement.

Low and behold, a few weeks later, as I was boarding Line 2 to make a quick run to Walmart, there was Mike, the only other rider on the bus. I sat across from him. Again, Mike was reading his little, old red Bible. “Reading Proverbs?” I asked. “No, reading Psalms.”  “They are good too,” I responded. “Heading to Walmart?”  “No,” said Mike. “I am going to the used book store. They are holding some books for me.”

Maybe Mike’s life is just a fantasy. He lives with some hope. His fantasy may someday be his reality.  “ Every man has a place, in his heart there’s a space, and the world can’t erase his fantasies.” (from Fantasy by Earth, Wind and Fire)*
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z3ALlhszIeo

As I was thinking of Mike I think everyone needs a cheerleader. I may have been that for Mike over the last few months in a quiet way. Just being around and being supportive, especially when you know it’s a good thing for them, may be all the encouragement someone needs. Our small conversations can be a big conversation in someone’s life that can trigger just enough encouragement they need to make the changes they really want to make.

Then the more I thought about Mike and my taking some credit for some of the good things I was seeing develop in his life... all of a sudden my mind did a reversal on me. Maybe this is not about Mike at all. Maybe I just met one of those Angels that we see appear in the movies. You know, the one dressed like a homeless, poor person, but someone sent from God to show us a better way.
Maybe Mike was my Angel to make me see more of what I should be.

Those that we think we are helping, 
may very well be the ones helping or teaching us.


*I heard this song, Fantasy, when on Line 14 as the driver ran into the transit office to get something. He had his radio on and this song was playing... I found it on You Tube. It seemed to belong to Mike’s story.