We try to talk to people as we travel around the country. We often see homeless people, or people begging on the sidewalk or holding a sign at an intersection. When we can, we approach people and talk to them. Sometimes they’re asking for money and we give them some. Other times they aren’t, but we think people want to be seen, want to be recognized, want you to ask them their name and listen to them.
When crossing the country east to west during the summer of 2019, we got off I-80 and pulled into the parking lot of a Starbucks in Elko, Nevada. There we saw a guy sitting on the ground under a tree and went over to talk to him. He looked okay and sounded okay, but, of course, he wasn’t. He was probably in his late 20s. He had been in the post-9/11 army, and since getting out had had a hard time holding a job. He had drifted down to Elko from Washington. He wanted to get a license to drive big-rig trucks cross country. He was clearly frustrated, maybe lost. He said this to us:
“I think I know how things work. But I’d like to talk to someone who knows how things really work.”
I thought, but didn’t say out loud: “Here’s how things really work: This country is set up to hurt you. The people who are having their way in this country have you right where they want you.”
A couple of months later in Bend, Oregon, we had a different encounter at the place of work of a forty-five year old woman who has a job.
Often when we check out at a grocery store, we’re asked two questions by the cashier: “Did you find everything you were looking for?” and “Do you have any plans for the weekend?” The answer to both, of course, is no.
But on that day in Bend, this cashier asked us a different question: “What are you grateful for?” We told her we’re grateful for each other and the life we’ve had and still have together. When we then asked her what she’s grateful for, she said:
“I’m grateful that I can support myself.”
America is a country where many can’t. She knew that, and in her low-paying, tedious job, she knew that she was one of the lucky ones who can.
