Gerald made his way to the homeless shelter

Being hungry he lined up early to be sure to get some food

A light meal was served daily at 5.30pm, it was his only regular nourishment

Thinking back to the days when he had a job

Remembering how good life was back then

He worked hard and was married to Liz

They owned a small house and had a comfortable life

But that seemed a long time ago now

Gerald joined the long line at the shelter

Recognizing many of the guys he had seen here before but this was no family

You could easily be robbed while sleeping

Gerald thought back to how he got here

Liz had fallen sick and had to quit her job and the medical bills had to be paid

Other bills and their mortgage were neglected

As shelter door opened he shuffled along towards the front desk

Volunteers telling each person the shelter rules as they entered

No alcohol, drugs or weapons allowed

Gerald missed Liz terribly

He was laid off from work while he cared for her 

She passed away from the cancer three years ago

Soon after that his home was foreclosed

The line moved forward slowly as Gerald’s mind came back to the present

He reached the check-in window

James was volunteering as usual, he smiled and handed Gerald a large envelope whispering

Make sure you open this in private Gerald

Gerald stuffed the envelope in his pocket fearing it might be bad news

After dinner he went to the bathroom

Inside the envelope was $50,000 in cash

He hid it quickly in his pockets and went back to the office asking James where it came from

Somebody dropped it off and told me it was for you Gerald

They said it was personal and private

I have no idea who they are sorry