It was a cold winter night, as expected during the holidays in New York.
Every Christmas my memories take me back to the day I met my good friend Charlie. It was late and everyday after the restaurant closed I walked to the dumpster and as usual there was Charlie. Charlie was a homeless man who I fed that day, and he would come around every night after to sit outside in the darkness to have incredible conversations. Who would have thought a homeless man would have had an interesting life, but Charlie was not your average homeless man. He encountered a terrible tragedy, the death of his entire family in a car crash. Which led him to his lonely life style. Charlie was the inspiration of my successful business, but I have not seen him since
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He smiled up at me with his cubby cheeks an angelic face. As I came closer he extended his hand and introduced himself as Eli, the ghost of Christmas past. Before I knew it we were flying above the restaurant that I had just left, but it was different, it was in the past. It was busy and I saw myself walking outside to dump the garbage like every night, and there was Charlie. He was dirty and cold digging through the dumpster and I took him inside and fed him. Charlie became my best friend, he told me his story of how he owned a large tile company, had a beautiful home and great family. Then how the devastating tragedy of his family led to his homeless lifestyle. After some time Charlie taught me everything we needed to start a tile business of our own. He moved in and shared half the profits, until one day he …show more content…
Vince was the ghost of Christmas future. He took me back to the restaurant once again, where an old man was digging in the dumpster. This was getting old! When I looked closer, the old man was me. When I asked what happened, Vince explained that I wasted all my money, my wife and kids left me and I was living in the homeless shelter I had just visited. My lavish selfish life led me to become just like Charlie, who I didn’t bother to look for after he disappeared.
Once I returned to the party at my house, I realized what a terrible person I had been. Charlie was humble and trusting. He made me who I was today, but I never was concerned about where he was or why he disappeared. At that moment I gathered my family with every single present under our tree and went straight to the homeless shelter. The joy in the children’s eyes was enough to make us cry. In the end I was able to locate Charlie’s brother who ironically knew the business as well, and offered him part of my business. My life would never be the same, and every year we promised to return to the homeless
The next morning, Maggie filed a police report about seeing the young boy in their house the previous night prior to her husband’s death. The police went to the Wilson’s house to investigate, but the boy was gone and there was no sign of any unusual activity. The three of them went back to their home where they mourned the loss of their dad and husband. The next night went smooth, they all stayed in the guest bedroom, avoiding the room where they had seen the young boy, and the room where Joe died. Two days later, at Joe’s funeral, Reagan spotted a young boy that looked like the boy she saw floating into her room that dreadful night. Reagan rushed over to her mom and Chandler to tell them what she saw. The night of the funeral, thunderstorms moved in and a big gust of wind blew a tree limb down onto the power lines adjacent to their house. This caused a power outage in the middle of the night followed by a loud lightning strike, which woke Maggie up. Suddenly an image appeared to be floating toward her. The shadow immediately made her think of the young boy they saw the other day. Before Maggie could call the police, the young boy strangled her to death. Her screams woke Reagan and Chandler up. They hid under the covers crying and hoping the young demon boy would go away. However,
... to all the children that entered Ruby Pier. They all knew that they would be safe because they had someone watching over them, like an angel. Eddie had been the children’s angel.
For Charlie, Ignorance is bliss. He realizes that his so called ? friends? were just using him to entertain their perverse humor. Also, he was also fired from the job that he loved so much because his new intelligence made those around him feel inferior and scared.
I heard a blood-curdling scream and I jumped. I felt silent tears running down my heavily scarred face, but they weren’t out of sadness. Mostly. They were a mixture of pain and fear. I ran into the eerie, blood-splattered room and screamed as I felt cold fingers grab my neck. Before that night, I didn’t believe in the paranormal. Now I sure as heck do. I had been chased out of my house after a fight with my step-parents because I wasn’t doing well in school (I had dyslexia), and I had taken shelter in what seemed like a normal house. I realized what I had gotten into after the sun set. The doors locked without a sign of anyone going near them. A cold draft filled the room I was in. The house turned into a horrific scene, and I knew I would never get out alive. It was the Asylum. There’s a rumor in our town, a rumor that started when someone made the observation that everyone fit in. No one was considered strange, homeless, an outsider. That doesn’t seem possible, you think. In my town, there are tons of people with no homes, or people that don’t belong, you think. Well, think again. Those homeless people? Think about how many there are. They fit in with each other. Those people that don’t belong? Once again, they fit in with each other. But then, you
It all began with a simple phone call one night after dinner. “Tommy,” my father hollered up the stairs, “it’s for you. It’s Austin, and he sounds upset.” As I came downstairs to pick up the phone, I was not happy. I was tired and had looked forward to a nice quiet evening at home, not another stupid adventure with Austin.
It’s late Friday night, Rachel has just finished grading papers. She leaves the school and heads for Phillies, knowing Jacob will meet her there she stops to give a homeless man some change. Little does she know, he has shed his dirty coat to reveal a beautiful suit and is wiping the grime off of his face. He wants that girl’s watch so bad he can taste it. She walks into the cafe and sits at an empty seat. The man waits a few minutes before placing a hat on his head, walking inside, and sitting as far away from the girl as possible. It’s just a matter of time.
Couple of days ago I saw a homeless people that seemed to be ranging from all ages. Homeless people I thought were mostly people who had lost their job as a result couldn’t pay for their living conditions such as a house and or apartment. After looking at this teenage boy has made me wonder what caused each homeless person that they have to ask for money. As I grew up, I got a better understanding of why these people were hand paddling for a living. I learned that most of these people had lost their jobs and or had bad money managing skills. Homeless people are everywhere around the world no matter the country and state. Near a gas station in Seattle I noticed a teenager who looked as if he was a senior in high school. He looked as if he was only the streets for a couple of day to a maximum of two weeks. Most homeless people I see are mostly lived like that for weeks and month. Also have that certain smell I can never forget.
...ing on Marlon’s door, he recognizes it is the “ghost out of the past” coming to remind him of all the troubles he made throughout his life. He comes to conclusion no matter how far he has come, his past will always come back to haunt him. Charlie cannot cope with the guilt he holds inside from his past the “memory of those days swept over him like a nightmare” and his inability to expiate it terrorizes him. Charlie refers to his past as a nightmare because he is sorrowful of his actions and his battle with alcohol. Charlie is torn by his own guilt-ridden conscience which cause him to “blame the errors of his past for the pains of his present” powerless of escaping the past with persistent reminders of his regrettable actions (Toor 1). He continues to hold anguish of his past that inadvertently leads to his present to become suffocated with the agony he holds.
I remember hearing the day before about people protesting. People were talking about these protests being violent and that it had happened before. That night I went to sleep scared knowing that the next day I had school. I was hoping that school would be cancelled the next day and if they hadn't then my mom wouldn't let me go, but knowing the school system there was no way they were going to close schools and my mom would not let me stay home if the school didn't close because if I didn't attend school there was a good chance they would fail me for that year. The next day I woke up still scared, I got ready and waited for my sisters to come out, so we could walk like we usually did every day. Walking to school everything was normal, and everyone was going about their business. It seemed like nothing was going to happen and I was relieved.We walked until we reached our favorite morning food stand and I bought my sisters and I plantain chips and we continued to walk down the dusty street until it was time for me to go a different route. We said our goodbyes. I waited until I couldn't see them anymore and crossed the street into the neighborhood with the weird little white church that constantly had people screaming, I've heard many things about this church.
I glance at my paint stained hands as I wait patiently in the stillness of the library. Carefully, I examine the remaining chips of vibrant acrylic that linger on my fingers from my morning art class. My creativity appears on water color paper with the stroke of a soft-bristled brush, with the scenes I etch it my sketch book with crumbling charcoal, and with the press of my finger as I position my camera for the perfect shot. Suddenly, I look up and see a girl, with a sweet but tired face, you wouldn’t realize she is homeless based on her appearance. I earnestly smile and give a gentle wave in her direction. She spots me and walks over. As she sets down her blue backpack, I ask her about her day, and she eagerly tells me about the typical school
It took us over 2 hours to clean up the mess that only took 10 minutes to create. Once we finished, my grandmother spoke about the value of family. We all crowded around the Christmas tree listening to her. She remained us of the reason that we are all there. She pointed out some of life’s ups and downs as she remained us not to judge our lives by a single day or year. She forced us to reflect on our blessings as only she can do. I looked around and saw an endless sea of smiles as everyone took in her words of
Our eyes locked, as tears streamed down her sullen face. She was a petite woman with heavy dark eyes, revealing her struggle, her pain, and a hope for a better life. She cradled her infant gently, yet firmly as if it was her last breath. With every sway, she kissed her child’s head as a promissory note that she would take care of her and provide for her the world.
Tim peered through his ratty dread, fallen over his eyes like a rat tail. He looked blurry-eyed at the wet LA boulevard. Rain streaked his face as he took in the long, dark road ahead. The blacktop glistened in the traffic signals’ light. The only yellow light shimmered from the rare passing headlights. Few and far between, puke puddles lined the sidewalks. His tears were indecipherable amidst rain drops.
In the morning, I didn’t feel well and decided to phone my manager to take a day off. Mike finished his breakfast, kissed me goodbye on my forehead and closed the door behind. It was time to prepare breakfast for Luke. I heard very often from other mums, that they need to kick their teenage kids out of their bed every morning. But with our son Luke, it was different. With a great excitement in eyes and a big smile, he was ready to start another day. I was making pancakes with a strawberry jam. His favorite.
It was Christmas Eve, 2003, when a terrible storm hit. In the awful storm, his wife and two boys had been caught outside and had been blown away in the snowstorm and were found dead, plastered against a barn five miles away. Henry was heartbroken. He asked why and why not him instead of his beautiful wife and kids. He blamed it on Christmas. Every year after that, he despised Christmas because he would have to spend the day all alone and think about what had happened on that cold, windy day in