Signs

I must give credit where credit is due: my husband is the reason I wake up every morning--I don't mean in a cheesy way, I mean LITTERALY, I don't get out of bed unless he pulls the covers off of me, pulls on my leg, or flips on the cell phone ring-tone that sounds like an alarm from a nuclear meltdown. I really don't know if I could do it without this, well, loving inspiration. Now don't you feel all warm inside? Good. So I have three signs I want to talk about, the first is not literal, it is more the spiritual sense of the word. At the beginning and end of my 5K I run past rod-iron gates with about ten little angels kneeling on the posts. I like to pass by and give them imaginary high-fives, because I know there are REAL angels helping me out during this very difficult process. The little figures come at just the right moments. At the beginning of my run when I say "I really don't feel like doing this." And at the end when I say, "When will this end!" A great reminder and a nice "sign" that says, "Don't give up, there are a lot of people rooting for you." The second sign I saw today was on the way home from Costco. There was a frail man on the corner of an intersection with faded navy jeans, a grayish-black sweatshirt donning a random logo--stuff that you would get from a shelter or clothing drive. His face was scruffy with hints of gray, and his hair was puffing awkwardly out of a too-large ball cap. His sign said "Homeless, Hungry Vet. Please Help. God Bless." I usually pass by these folks because many of them are addicts, but the haunting look of his sunken cheeks and sad eyes made me stop. At Costco I bought my daughter a pizza slice, and I ate half of it. I didn't need to, but I bought myself a salad, with chicken, dressing, tomatoes, fork, croutons, all packaged nicely in a to-go container to eat later. I opened the window just a few inches and placed the salad in the man's weathered hands, and the look of gratitude on his face almost made me cry. "Wow, thank you," He said. Then he crossed the street to find a grassy place to eat his meal. Now the third sign, shown below, is from my imagination. I thought "Hmm, what would I write on a beggar's sign on the side of the street? Clearly I am not thin, or in need, but I do have food cravings." So I came up with this. Please enjoy cause this picture took me way too long, but I hope it makes you laugh.