stark

Pulling up to the stop light, I noticed him right away. The gaunt, bent-over frame holding a cardboard sign was hard to miss, especially at the corner of a busy intersection not known for its foot traffic. "Unemployed carpenter. Tired and hungry, " his sign read. From two lanes away, I watched as he poured water from a fast food cup onto his dirty rag and tried to wash away the stickiness of the day from his face and neck.

Suddenly my view was blocked by a sexy silver convertible that pulled into the lane between us. With his music blaring, the driver, a young man with designer shades, turned to glance at the homeless man. Immediately, he turned back to face the front, picked up his iPod, and fiddled with it just long enough for the light to change.

The light finally turned green, and as we both drove away, I was left wanting to somehow right the wrong that didn't really exist.