The man slowly looked up. This was a
woman clearly accustomed to the finer things of life. Her coat was new. She
looked like that she had never missed a meal in her life. His first thought was
that she wanted to make fun of him, like so many others had done before.
‘Leave me alone,’ he growled.
To his amazement, the woman continued
standing. She was smiling — her even white teeth displayed in dazzling rows.
‘Are you hungry?’ she asked.
‘No,’ he answered sarcastically. ‘I’ve
just come from dining with the president. Now go away.’ The woman’s smile
became even broader. Suddenly the man felt a gentle hand under his arm.
‘What are you doing, lady?’ the man
asked angrily. ‘I said to leave me alone.’
Just then a policeman came up. ‘Is
there any problem, ma’am?’ he asked.
‘No problem here, officer,’ the woman
answered. ‘I’m just trying to get this man to his feet. Will you help me?’
The officer scratched his head. ‘That’s
old Jack. He’s been a fixture around here for a couple of years. What do you
want with him?’
‘See that cafeteria over there?’ she
asked. ‘I’m going to get him something to eat and get him out of the cold for
awhile.’
‘Are you crazy, lady?’ the homeless man
resisted. ‘I don’t want to go in there!’ Then he felt strong hands grab his
other arm and lift him up.
‘Let me go, officer. I didn’t do
anything.’
‘This is a good deal for you, Jack,’
the officer answered. ‘Don’t blow it.’
Finally, and with some difficulty, the
woman and the police officer got Jack into the cafeteria and sat him at a table
in a remote corner. It was the middle of the morning, so most of the breakfast
crowd had already left and the lunch bunch had not yet arrived. The manager strode
across the cafeteria and stood by his table.
‘What’s going on here, officer?’ he
asked. ‘What is all this. Is this man in trouble?’
‘This lady brought this man in here to
be fed,’ the policeman answered.
‘Not in here!’ the manager replied
angrily. ‘Having a person like that here is bad for business.’
Old Jack smiled a toothless grin. ‘See,
lady. I told you so. Now if you’ll let me go. I didn’t want to come here in the
first place.’
The woman turned to the cafeteria
manager and smiled. ‘Sir, are you familiar with Eddy and Associates, the
banking firm down the street?’
‘Of course I am,’ the manager answered
impatiently. ‘They hold their weekly meetings in one of my banquet rooms.’
‘And do you make a goodly amount of
money providing food at these weekly meetings?’
‘What business is that of yours?’
‘I, sir, am Penelope Eddy, president
and CEO of the company.’
‘Oh.’The woman smiled again. ‘I thought
that might make a difference.’ She glanced at the cop who was busy stifling a
giggle. ‘Would you like to join us in a cup of coffee and a meal, officer?’
‘No thanks, ma’am,’ the officer
replied. ‘I’m on duty.’
‘Then, perhaps, a cup of coffee to go?’
‘Yes, ma’am. That would be very nice.’
The cafeteria manager turned on his
heel ‘I’ll get your coffee for you right away, officer.’ The officer watched
him walk away. ‘You certainly put him in his place,’ he said.
‘That was not my intent. Believe it or
not, I have a reason for all this.’
She sat down at the table across from
her amazed dinner guest She stared at him intently. ‘Jack, do you remember me?’
Old Jack searched her face with his old
, rheumy eyes ‘I think so — I mean you do look familiar.’
‘I’m a little older perhaps,’ she said.
‘Maybe I’ve even filled out more than in my younger days when you worked here,
and I came through that very door, cold and hungry.’
‘Ma’am?’ the officer said questioningly.
He couldn’t believe that such a magnificently turned out woman could ever have
been hungry.
‘I was just out of college,’ the woman
began. ‘I had come to the city looking for a job, but I couldn’t find anything.
Finally I was down to my last few cents and had been kicked out of my
apartment. I walked the streets for days. It was February and I was cold and
nearly starving. I saw this place and walked in on the off chance that I could
get something to eat.’
Jack lit up with a smile. ‘Now I remember,’
he said. ‘I was behind the serving counter. You came up and asked me if you
could work for something to eat. I said that it was against company policy.’
‘I know,’ the woman continued. ‘Then
you made me the biggest roast beef sandwich that I had ever seen, gave me a cup
of coffee, and told me to go over to a corner table and enjoy it. I was afraid
that you would get into trouble Then, when I looked over, I saw you put the price
of my food in the cash register I knew then that everything would be all
right.’
‘So you started your own business?’ Old
Jack said.
‘I got a job that very afternoon. I
worked my way up. Eventually I started my own business, that, with the help of
God, prospered.’ She opened her purse and pulled out a business card. ‘When you
are finished here, I want you to pay a visit to a Mr. Lyons. He’s the personnel
director of my company. I’ll go talk to him now and I’m certain he’ll find
something for you to do around the office.’ She smiled. ‘I think he might even
find the funds to give you a little advance so that you can buy some clothes
and get a place to live until you get on your feet. If you ever need anything,
my door is always opened to you.’
There were tears in the old man’s eyes.
‘How can I ever thank you? ‘ he said.
‘Don’t thank me,’ the woman answered.
‘To God goes the glory. Thank Jesus. He led me to you.’
Outside the cafeteria, the officer and
the woman paused at the entrance before going their separate ways. ‘Thank you
for all your help, officer,’ she said.
‘On the contrary, Ms. Eddy,’ he
answered. ‘Thank you. I saw a miracle today, something that I will never
forget. And…And thank you for the coffee.
