I’ve been a loyal customer of the gas station on Elgin and Scott for the past three years. For those of you not familiar with the area, let’s just say it’s not one of the “safer” parts of Houston. As long as I can remember, there has been the same man standing outside the gas station always offering some sort of service in exchange for, what he likes to call “spare change”. The idea of spare change always seems funny to me, being the poor college student that I am. Anyways, he always offers to wash my car windows or to pump my gas in exchange for a dollar or two, which I find quite admirable. Every time I see him he has a huge smile on his face, so I figured he would be the perfect person to spend the day with. This was my first attempt to hang out with a homeless person and I was a little nervous, so I thought it wise to talk with someone who seemed to have a sunny disposition.
I drove up to the gas station, saw him standing outside, turned off my car, and began to walk towards him. He greeted me with a friendly “Hey lil’ mama”, as he often did. I introduced myself and asked him if it would be okay to talk to him for a little while. He was very receptive to my request and his eyes lit up as we began our conversation. We sat down on the side walk as I got to know more about him. His name is Tony, and he has been a resident of Houston’s 3rd Ward his whole life. After exchanging pleasantries, the conversation took an unexpected turn. “Hey Sabrina, I bet you can’t name the three families that REALLY control our country”, he excitedly asked me. I was thinking in my head, is this guy really going to start talking to me about conspiracy theories? I was intrigued because I myself am a conspiracy theory freak! I quickly asked him who, and he began to tell me about the Rockefellers, Bilderburgs, Rothschild’s, as well as the illuminati and their plan to create a one world government. Not only did he know an abundance of information about conspiracy theories, he also knew information about the upcoming Presidential election, as well as current events. I was thoroughly enjoying our conversation, and as bad as this may sound, was shocked that a man who has lived on the streets for most of his life was so intelligent. He then told me something that has stuck with me ever since. He said most people look at him like he’s a waste of a life, but he considers himself free. He is free because he chooses to be. Instead of creating problems in his head like most people do, he creates happiness by appreciating the beauty in the people and world surrounding him.
After hours of conversation the sun started to go down, so I thanked him for allowing me to get to know him and went on my way. As I drove home, my mind was racing a mile a minute. It was amazing for me to see a man, who really has nothing, be so happy, appreciative, and knowledgeable about life. His passion for life was unlike anything I had ever seen, and his words will forever remain in my mind. My day spent with Tony forced me to think about my own life. Needless to say, my first time hanging out with a homeless person turned out in a way I never would have imagined. His words inspired me. I must admit, I went into this whole experiment not too sure about what I’d learn, and after my talk with Tony, I am starting to realize that what I’m doing is bigger than I thought, and going to affect me more than I had ever imagined.
