A Winter's Evening
The strength of the human spirit continually amazes me. I have a tendency to whine occasionally, and feel sorry for myself. I have friends, however, who are generous enough to share their stories, thoughts, and lives, with me. They remind me what a lucky man I am, and also that my inconveniences are very small. I am blessed to know these people, most of whom I only see once or twice a week for a couple of hours at a time. Their dedication to learning the English language, their willingness to sacrifice themselves for their families, their strong desire to improve the lives of their families as well as themselves, for all these remarkable reasons I feel honored to know them.
Seventeen years ago, I became sick with an immune system disease. The life I had been living came to an end. It took many years just to be able to live on my own and take care of myself again. There were a number of times during those first several years when I didn't want to go on living. It was my love of reading, and a small bossy cockatiel, Harry, that helped me through the rough spots. Even after I was able to move out on my own again, I felt alone and disconnected from the rest of the world. One of the ways I found to have more contact with other people was becoming a tutor for Literacy Volunteers. It was one of the best things, maybe the best thing, I had ever done. In my life I try to be an optimist, always trying to hope and work for the best, but in observing the actions of humankind, I have always felt pessimistic about the future of the world. When I spend time, however, with the wonderful and remarkable people I have met at the Otis Library, I feel that there may be hope for the future of the human race after all. So, for those of you who share your lives with me, you know who are, Thank you.