therapy

» belong

"We belong," I popped the cap off the cold iced coffee and took a gulp of it. "We belong everywhere."

"Shouldn't we belong to just one place? After all, we are here. We aren't at the other side of the world, so why do we also belong there?" She snatched the bottle away from me and took a sip.

"Because humans are united, from one type of blood to the other, from one eye color to the other, from one faltering smile to the other. The humans across the world are no different than the ones we see down the street. From one race to another."

"Huh."

"Look to your right. See that old lady with the grocery bags?"

"Yeah."

"Now look the other way. See that little boy with the balloon and his mom walking by?"

"Yeah..."

"How many obstacles do you think each of them conquered when they first opened up their eyes this morning?"

"I don't know, how many?"

"More than we can count. Sure, they might be from different age ranges but every day, we conquer the struggles of the past, the struggles of yesterday. The old lady made her rusty bones strong enough to step out of her bed and onto a bustling world. That little boy has to conquer the new alternations in his mind. He is taking in this world so rapidly, growing so fast, without taking a step back to think on it, reflect on it. The mom? She has to be strong, a role model for her kids, and at the same time? She has to be a role model for herself. She has to teach herself that she is capable of raising kids and working a job. She is capable of smiling and finding her inner self."

She was quiet as she spun the straw in the drink. Her eyes squinted towards the people around the sidewalk. "And him?"

A homeless man with his palm extended was begging for spare change. "He's conquering his dignity. He has to wake up to the car horns and to the gas exhaust that suffocates his lungs. We don't know how he got there but we do know that he doesn't want to be where he is currently. He's struggling against conventional expectations and he is struggling to find his human worth every time he asks hey, can you please spare change?"  

She went up to the homeless man and gave him her lunch. He shook her hands and a smile beamed on his lips, muttering thank you, thank you, may God bless you.