Today it rained. It rained real hard. I was able to clean myself in the rain, but my sack of clothing and my few belongings – my grandpa’s watch, my coin purse, and my book – were not saved by the rain. I was feelin’ a little lonely, so I decided to see if Janice was under the overpass; she wasn’t – she must’ve been gettin’ her daily fix. Lord, if only she would just stop.
I decided to sit down and dry off the items in my bag. The watch had water droplets underneath its glass face, but my book was only slightly damp. At least one outta two things went my way for once.
“‘Jes-s-us sa-a-aid to th-th-em -- ” “Do not be afraid.” Startled, but not scared (nothing scares me no more), I looked up from my book to find a man in a nice jacket and pants. He told me his name was David and that he was a volunteer of a local hospital looking to give treatment to poor drug addicts. I quickly told him about Janice and the others who were always messin’ around and then walked away. I was too angry to stay near him. Sure, Janice and her friends need the help, but what about the rest of us? I need help, too. Hell, maybe I should join Janice just so I can get some attention around here. But no, I couldn’t. I’m too smart to start that crap. Anyway, I gotta job to get, and with the way the world is right now, I’m sure every employer runs drug tests.
So I walked toward the river – the only place where I can go and not think about how messed up my life is. When I was finally able to sit on the banks and just relax, I noticed a group of women marchin’ and prayin’ the rosary a little ways away. Somethin’ about them captivated me. I wanted to join them, to experience whatever they were experiencing. They, they just looked so…peaceful.
I left my things on the ground and slowly walked over to the women. They continued to march, slowly and quietly, and I continued to pursue them like they were holding the secrets to another world. But when I was about thirty feet away, a rain drop fell from the dark, rumbling sky. I ignored the impending flood and persisted to follow them; they had something I wanted, and I knew they could help give it to me. But, as the clouds gave way, I was immediately overcome with the fact that I couldn’t be doing this. If I wanted to live through the cold, wet winter night, I needed to get some place dry.
Ashamed and troubled, I turned around and ran back to my belongings; there wasn’t much time before my clothes would be just as soaked as the soft earth. And as I ran away, I felt the strong wind brush against my cheeks and tug against my clothes. Large drops of rain stung my face, but they didn’t matter; they mixed with the despaired waters already pouring from my eyes.
Today it rained. It rained hard.