One day while walking home
From the bar I used to like
I stumbled upon a stranger
Laying among some bikes

I asked if he'd eaten
He simply shook his head
So I told him if he'd help me home
I'd give him food and bed.

As we walked through the night
The conversations that we shared
Were tales of love and broken pasts
And the things that made us scared

At my home we shared some soup
Some bread and then some wine
Then I bid the stranger goodnight
As he slept in a spare bed of mine

In the morning, I found no sign of him
Except one note alone
Telling me of what it meant
For him to be accepted in my home

"Your stories were given free of charge
As was the time you gave
Walking with a dying old fool
Who's life you may have saved.

In your home, you gave your bed
Your food and kindness shined
And now, my friend it is my turn
To pay you back in kind.

You have the things that make you glad
And more than you really need
I don't have much but this note I give
Is important that you read.

My life looks sad and broken
But it wasn't always so
Once I was a mighty man
And pain I did not know

I had a family oh so dear
Seems like so long ago
But love from them still holds me up
Though it may not always show.

Sir, find yourself a mate and child
Watch them grow and give them the love
That you showed a man undeserving
To secure you place above.

My final gift that I can give
Is a blessing and a prayer
That someday you find your riches
Just as down here- up there."

As I finished the old man's words
I wiped away a tear
I returned to the bike rack
To revisit the seer

Never think you have it all
There is always something more
As I found out with the begger
I gave much, but he gave more.
© Geoffrey Shelton