I stepped into the well appointed restroom of the hotel and
noticed a man washing his hands in the sink, at least that’s what it looked
like at first glance. I nodded and smiled, and he asked how I was doing. I said
that I was doing good, as I began to take care of my business. It was then that
I realized that my initial assessment of this man was incorrect, because he
began to talk, and talk, and talk. He was a homeless man, and instead of just
washing his hands, he was washing up in the bathroom.
He said that he was depressed, and then he began to babble
(or at least that’s what it sounded like to me, probably because I was trying
to ignore him).
When I finished doing what I went in there for, I went to
the only other sink in the bathroom which was right next to his, and while I
washed my hands, he began to reiterate what he had previously said. This time I
could hear him, but perhaps more importantly I couldn’t ignore him.
He said that he didn’t know whether he was a positive or a
negative in society. He went on to say that if he was a negative, that he would
just end his life because the world would be better off without him. He professed his belief that under normal circumstances
taking ones life was an unforgivable sin, but he said that if he was a
negative, then God would swoop him up in his arms, because his sacrifice would
be in the best interest of society at large.
I grabbed a paper towel from the stack on the tile counter between
the two sinks, and I glanced at him. He was looking to me with pleading eyes,
and concern on his face as he asked me what I thought. He seemed to be really
searching for an answer, so I told him that I had two things to tell him.
The first was that the choice of whether he was a positive
or a negative was in his hands.
I said, “Making the initial choice to be a positive is easy,
and it can be done right now, right here, in this bathroom. If you decide to be a
positive, then you are.” I went on to say that the hard part comes when you
have to live up to that initial decision. I said, “Living every moment as that
person can be hard, but just realize that the choice is yours. Every time you
are given an option for the rest of your life, you can choose to do the
positive thing.”
The second thing I told him was that once he was gone, his
opportunity to contribution to society would end forever. I told him that he
would never again be able to fix or change anything. “Your impact on
this world would end.” I said, “Your legacy would be over.”
He seemed kind of stunned, as he repeated to himself the
things I had said to him. He looked back to me and the concern on his face
had been replaced by hope. He thanked me, and he said that he was glad that he had
talked to me, because no one had ever said anything like that to him before.
