Happy Tuesday!
As I sit down to reflect on this afternoon, yes it's just past noon at 12:30 p.m. here, I’m struck by how the simplest moments can become profound. I just left the gym, my regular therapy session. That’s what I call it, and it truly is therapy for me. The discipline, the sweat, the silence, it all grounds me.
Today, something beautiful happened. While working out, I met a man named Mr. Ray, a 73 years old retiree, full of warmth and life. He was kind, gentle, and invited me to his church. We had a brief but uplifting conversation. It reminded me that there is still goodness in strangers.
After the gym, I headed straight to the gas station to fill up before driving to New York to visit. While sitting in my car, I noticed a man step out of a sleek Mercedes-Benz. What caught my attention, though, was not the nice car, it was the ankle monitor he wore. My mind began to race. I thought to myself, “What could he have done to carry such a burden? Life is already hard enough without limitations like that.” I wasn’t judging him, at least not intentionally, but my thoughts were wandering, reflecting on the possibilities and hardships he might have faced with that monitor.
Then, something unexpected happened. As I stood out at the pump, the same man came out of the gas station store and in passing, looked at me with a warm smile. “How are you doing, brother?” he said.
Brother!
That word hit me. It is rare in our world today, especially in places where people pass each other silently, eyes down on our phones, hearts closed. And here was this man, ankle monitor and all, greeting me not just as a person, but as a brother. His tone was kind, his spirit respectful. He looked like someone who’s been through life, strong, perhaps hardened, but not closed off. He extended something more than a greeting; he extended dignity despite being conscious perhaps with the burden on him.
And I had to tell him. As he walked back to his car, I stopped him and said, “You touched me. That was really kind, greeting me and calling me brother.” Without hesitation, he looked me in the eye and said, “You are my brother.”
At that moment, I felt humbled. If I had the power, I would rip that monitor off him. But seriously, just minutes before, I had been sitting in my car with silent curiosity thinking about him, wondering what his story was, what his ankle monitor symbolized. But the truth is, I don’t know his whole story. Maybe he made a mistake. Maybe he was wrongfully accused and convicted. Maybe he is in the middle of a hard chapter of his life. It could be anything. Who knows?
What I do know is that he chose kindness. In a world quick to condemn and slow to embrace, he greeted me not with suspicion, but with brotherhood. And that touched me deeply.
Here is the point: life is dynamic, it is already hard. People carry visible and invisible chains all the time, I call it crosses, and they could be ankle monitors, traumas, poverty, loneliness, illness, loss. And yet, beneath all of that, there is a shared humanity. We all want the same thing. And yes, we never know what people are going through. We don’t know the battles they’re fighting silently. We don’t know how close they are to hope or despair and for that matter. But we always have the choice to meet each other with grace.
I didn't get to ask him why he wore that ankle monitor, it is not my place. What mattered most at that moment was not his past, but his present: a simple act of kindness from one stranger to another. That was enough.
So wherever you are, whoever you meet today, remember: life is hard enough as it is. Let us not add to the weight people carry with judgment, assumptions, or coldness. Let us meet each other with the dignity we all deserve, as brothers and sisters, walking this difficult road together.
God bless you. Stay safe. Stay out of trouble. And stay human.
Pal Ronnie
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