Can I clean your car

I had just decided that I was going to have my mom's house sold when I heard my phone ring. It was my insurance adjuster telling me about the mold and how bad the house was. I could not even want to spend time fixing it because he felt that it was beyond repairs. It will be better to just sell it as it was. I hung up the phone and rushed to the gym to think further how best to get rid of my mom's house. Just as the light turned green in the intersection I realized that I was running out of gas. I slowly drove into the gas station not hoping for any event, that day. There was a homeless guy sitting at the edge of the store. I bought my gas and walked to my car. Just as he was about to approach me he was interrupted by an older lady who wanted to offer him a sandwich. He looked up and said, "I meant to ask her (pointing at me) for a quarter. I think that phone booth still works, I have to make a call." he said to the lady.

"Walk by then, I just wanted to give you a sandwich." the older lady said.

"Are your hands clean? Where did you get that sandwich anyways?" he asked as if to mock her.

" I just had lunch and I remembered that you are always sitting here asking for money or to wash our windows for a penny. I thought I could give you my sandwich from the center." she said.

" What type of sandwich is it? Tuna? I don't like tuna, pastrami, I like pastrami." he said

"It's an egg sandwich. It's okay if you don't like it I can have it for dinner!" she said.

"Alright I'll take your sandwich." he said

I was still pouring gas to my car when he approached me with a sandwich and a squeegee to offer to clean my windows.

"Hey Miss can I clean your car for a dollar, five dollars at least?" he said with hopeful eyes. He looked like he had been homeless for a number of years and he no longer cared who knew that he was homeless. He was dressed in old dirty clothes. His shoes looked like someone had just given him a pair recently. They ill fitted him and his hair was uncombed. He still had his teeth and one could see a glimmer of life in him. He still wanted to live. He lifted the wipers of my car and started squeezing water to my car windows. Typically this happened all the time but one had to give the homeless permission or promise to pay them before they could squeegee the car windows. In his case something was drawing him close to me and I could sense that he had some sort of hope. Funny I was just talking to my adjuster and here he was wondering at a gas station where I was, looking in need of a home. Well maybe there was a message there, maybe not.

Finally my car was full. I offered him a ten dollar bill and he lingered around and said nothing but kept looking at the bill that I had just given him. I went back to my car. I received a call and it was my mom, she was travelling with her new boyfriend a young stud. I asked if she was well. She sounded too elated for words. I watched the homeless guy enter the gas station and the attendant asked him to stay out, and not enter his store. I then realized then and then that what I gave him was not the type of help that he needed. I am very impulsive, so while on the phone with my mom, I said to my mom. " Mom a homeless guy just asked to clean my windows. I gave him a ten and he tried to buy something with it and got chased out of the gas station by the attendant. Can I give him your house?" I said half jokingly half serious.

"It's up to you. Your dad cheated on me in that house. Give it to the homeless guy, see if I care." she said.

"Mom. I will take your word for it, I think I will ask him if he could accept the house to clean himself up. That's how I will put... it clean himself up until he can do for himself, I think that makes sense. Right. I won't sell the house like I planned to. I will instead let a homeless guy who is likely to kill us both or find our savings and steal from us or even want to date us. I... I... I will give such a man our precious home and the neighbors will once and for all know us well." I said to my mom also to myself.

"Are you serious? Or are you joking?" my mom asked but I could tell that she didn't want to lose the momentum of the fun she was having on her travels by focusing on my sudden interest in helping 'the homeless.' I was late for my aerobics class. My phone conversation was more important than losing calories for a day. I thought seriously what if I approached the guy and he became belligerent. I was in a public space everyone could see what I was up to. I got off my car which by now was parked near the gas station's parking lot. I walked to the homeless gay. I said. "Are you homeless for real? Do you really need help?"

He looked up at me and said; "Yeah I am homeless. I have been on the streets for years close to two decades now yeah I am homeless. "he said lighting a cigarette.

"You are not talking to me about that attendant chasing me out of the store, are you? That happens all the time. I am in a different spot today. I have to try and be where I normally spend my day. They know me there. I can buy what I want whenever!" he said

"I get that, I was wondering, my mom has a house which is very old and in need of repairs. I was about to sell it but I am wondering what if you took care of it for me while you get your life together and then when you are ready you can leave you can return to the streets if that suits you. But at least you can have a break." I said

"Mam, I just wanted a couple of dollars for cleaning your car windows that's all. I just wanted to buy a cup of coffee and that's it. I will be on my way." he said and picked up his back pack and started to walk away.

I said to him sensing fear in his voice. "I am serious, I am not offering this to you because I feel sorry for you. I am offering it to you because I can. I will write down the address and here is the key. I will have the lights and water and gas turned on by tomorrow. If you do not keep the house clean you will have a problem. Lay low and keep the house clean. Go to the welfare office and apply for food stamps and wash up." I said

He looked at me with sadness in his eyes and I knew he was not going to take the key and the address from me. So I did the next best thing. I left it on the ground hoping he will walk back and pick it up. I walked to my car and drove around the block and returned to the gas station to check if he had accepted my help. He had or I choose to think that he had. A man was in my mom's house for a number of months. I heard from the neighbors that he was welcomed and fine to be in the neighborhood. No one knew his story I did.