The Car Watcher

I live pretty close to a park but it is not that close to walk to. I guess I could if I wanted to, but I prefer to drive there and walk 5k around the lake. There are many places to park around the park on the streets. If you get there early, before 9 am, it is easier to find a place near gates one and two. After that time, it is much harder to find a spot, especially in the summer time.

Sometimes, when I go after nine, I park near gate 4, but then you need to walk like 500 meters downhill and then back up when you leave the park, which is hard on the knees. So when that happens, I just take a 3k - walk around the lake. But to be frank, I like to park near gates one and two.

The main reason is that there is a homeless man who takes care of the cars parked near those gates. He must really scare thieves away because I have never heard of any cars being stolen around there on his watch. He lives in a tent under a tree across from the park in this kind of square. He actually shares his tent with two other men who help him keep an eye on the cars parked in his area. If you tell the other guys that you want to give the other guy the tip, they automatically tell you that they work as a team. I forgot to mention that they do not charge you anything, but everyone leaves them a tip. It really doesn’t matter how much you give them, they still smile back at you and thank you even if it is a 5 cent coin.

Anyhow, I want to tell you about this homeless man who keeps an eye on cars near gates one and two. I have known him for at least ten years. I have never asked him his name, though. But every morning, as I lock my car, he greets me with a beautiful smile and says: Good morning! How are you today?

I return his greeting and he always says: I’m doing very well thank you. It is a good feeling to know that he is there keeping an eye on my car.  Besides that, his greeting is warm and friendly. He has a brown dog which he shares his food with and takes very good care of it. He seems to be a very generous, simple man.

Perhaps one day I will chat a bit more with him and at least find out what his name is. From many scenes that I have witnessed I know that he doesn’t want to change his lifestyle and really enjoys living on the street.

Written: January 5, 2015 Todos os direitos reservados a Meire Marion.

Google Images : Parque da Aclimacão

Prayer is My Only Weapon

As I arrived at the park on an early Saturday morning, I noticed that there were quite a few people that I recognized from my usual morning walk which is usually between 9 and 10. Guess that they were awakened by the bright sun on that morning like me and decided to head out to the park earlier.

On my second kilometer I heard some people screaming “Catch him! Thief! Catch him!” I continued to walk but trying to make way for the police cars that we invading the park.

As I reached the end of my second kilometer, I saw the little bandits being handcuffed by the authorities. I reduced my speed to pay more attention to what had happened. Apparently the little boys, there were two of them, had mugged little old lady and two other men running in the park had caught them before the police arrived.

The little old lady had been carrying her purse around her neck when one of the little bandits pushed her while the other grabbed the purse. He also tore her blouse in the act. The little old woman was being helped by a young woman who was telling her everything was going to be alright while she helped her to one of the exits of the park also reassuring her that she would escort her all the way to her home as they passed by me.

Approaching the police car and the little bandits, I overheard one of the cops asking the boys why they had attacked a little defenseless old woman. One of the boys looked and pointed right at me and said, “You can’t expect us to mug someone like her. Look at those two guys she is walking with. It would be madness to mug her.” Enraged the cops threw the kids in the back of their police car and said “Let’s have them take a drug test.” “Yeah, they must really be on something powerful” answered the other one.

I decided that it was time to walk faster. I was very thankful but confused at the same time. What two guys were they talking about? I was all alone. I mean, I was walking in the park all by myself, although surround by other strangers. What two guys did the boys see that nobody else did?

As I continued my walk, the police car with the little bandits left and another stayed in the park to make sure the coast was clear before leaving. I kept wondering what the two little boys saw. Then it dawned on me that my morning prayer includes the line “Surround me by your angels.”

I am grateful!

(Written: December 27, 2014) Todos os direitos reservados a Meire Marion.

Photo: Google Images