A Generous Irishman

“I want to buy this for a friend of mine.  She has a 7 year old daughter and they need a place to live.”

-      Dominic Larkin

A Generous Irishman

When my phone rang about noon I had no idea what kind of generosity I was going to witness.  I told the caller that I would meet with him to walk through the home he was calling about in an hour and a half.   I gathered my things and made my way down to my car so I could drive the distance and arrive with plenty of time to spare.

When I pulled up to the house, the caller was already waiting in front.  He stood just less than six feet tall, had longer graying hair and was wearing a sort of safari hat with a chin string hanging down from its sides and looping down toward his Adam’s apple.  He was driving a large pickup truck and was smiling as he greeted me.

When I heard his voice it took me a minute to have the words he was speaking register in my brain.  He was from Ireland and his English was slightly different from what I was used to hearing.  Still, a momentary lag was all I needed to become fully present with this intriguing stranger.  I invited him into the house.

He became an active inspector was soon as he walked through the door.  He asked me question after question as he demonstrated his genuine interest.  He was thorough.  And, when he was mentally satisfied he became more affable and began to open a window into his purpose.

“I want to buy this for a friend of mine.  She has a 7-year-old daughter and they need a place to live.”  He explained.  “She was married and her husband left her alone with their daughter.  He just abandoned them and hasn’t given any support at all.  They don’t deserve to live on the street.”

“I need to make sure I can get them into a place and still have enough money to fix it up so it will be a nice home for them.” He continued.

I stood looking at him through new eyes.  The old ones I was looking through were not prepared to see a plain old Irishman turn into an angel in broad daylight.  I also had to put a mental pace-maker into my heart.  It was starting to beat way too fast; you know, the way your heart pounds when it gets an emotional rush.  After making these two adjustments I just gawked while listening to the rest of his tale.

“My friend also has another friend who is homeless.  This place would have enough room for everyone.  Yes.  This will make a nice home for them.”  He said contentedly with his Irish accent.

“Room for everyone. . .”  I pondered.  “I think we’ll need a lot more people like my Irish Angel if we’re going to make room for everyone!  Yes.  Room for everyone; perhaps if we work together and show our generosity it can happen!