This morning, I went for the same walk that I’ve been going on every day for the past couple of weeks.
It’s a six-mile walk down a nice biking trail that has lovely benches and play parks peppered along the way. Pretty much every day, I’ve seen the same young man sitting on the same bench.
He’s very interesting to me because he looks like he has a story.
Everyone does, of course, but there is something so intriguing about the combination of things that I can see about this man. He is always reading the newspaper when I see him, and he holds it like a total pro while he balances an insulated mug of what smells like coffee on his knee.
I can’t tell if he’s homeless, or if he just prefers to bring a lot of stuff with him wherever he goes. There’s always a bike leaning next to the bench — which I assume belongs to him. It’s an old rusty 10-speed, but it’s fitted with heavy-duty canvass bags on the back fender area; and, he’s got a ukulele tied to the post holding up the bike seat.
He’s very clean and somewhat poised. His posture is always upright and perfect, and his fingers look clean and elegant as he holds his newspaper. So far, every time I’ve seen him, he’s wearing the same odd hat. It’s rust-colored, and it looks like it’s made out of felt. In fact, it honestly looks like he borrowed the hat from one of the Keebler Elves — but somehow, he makes it work.
All of the details that I can gather about this man have made me wonder about him for days. If he happens to look up when I pass, I always offer up a kind smile, and a simple whispered, “Good morning.” He usually just nods at me, and then goes back to reading his paper.
But today, as I approached him, he stood up with his newspaper in hand, and moved toward the center of the path. It surprised me a little, but he appeared to be gentle and kind. So I slowed my pace to a halt, and I pulled out my ear buds so I could hear him better.
Him: I don’t usually believe in these things, but I’d like to read you your horoscope.
Me: Oh. OK?
Him: What is your astrological sign?
Me: I’m a Virgo.
Him: Oh! A vertigo!
Sure. Why not.
Him: So let’s see what it says about you, my dear. It says here, “Vertigo, things in your life are going to go from bad to worse.” Oh no. That’s horrible news! Let’s see if it gets any better. “But take heart. When things get bad, they will eventually get better.”
Me: Ha! Well I guess that’s not the best news, but at least I’ll be prepared, right?
Him: Let’s see if mine is any better. I’m a Sagittarius.
Me: My husband’s a Sagittarius!
Him: We like to roam free you know.
I did not know that…
Him: OK, here we go. Oh, this is great! “Sagittarius, you are a trail blazer. You are stuck right now, but trust your guiding angels to take you to the next place. You will be glad you did.” Now that’s a good one!
Me: That is! I guess it’s a good thing I’m married to someone with better news. So maybe I’ll just jump on my husband’s star today, and see where his angels take us.
Him: No. I think you’re just going to have a very shitty day.
And that was that.
As I continued on my walk, I had to chuckle. I often feel a lot like a “vertigo.” My life does take some dizzying turns that keep me spinning — even lately. I’m never certain at all about the story God has written for me in the stars, but somehow, I find continued faith to believe there is a plan for me. And while it’s never good news to hear that your life is going to go “from bad to worse,” maybe that’s not as scary for me to contemplate as it used to be.
Over time, I’ve gotten so much better at using other things to measure the quality of my life outside of my circumstances. And, just like that horoscope said, things do eventually get better — even if better just means that you’re more used to the things you don’t like about your life. Acceptance has made a huge difference in how I look at things these days. Sometimes, you’re going to have a bad day, and the sooner you accept that, the better you can handle one…
