Life

It is a very cold winter night, so cold that even the roads cannot bear the coldness but must give way for the snow and New York being one of the coldest states in America can be so cold that it makes it difficult for activities to be carried out normally. It is on this night that Mark Williams decides to leave his shelter under the bridge to find a warmer and more comfortable place to rest for the night. A young man of just 21 years of age finds himself on the streets after jumping from one foster home to another and never really finds any stability and nothing purposeful to do in life. His shirt all torn which exposes his skinny chest, his trousers all torn and parched; his winter jacket is so brown that one cannot make out its color and his hair is so long, stinking, shabby so much that he could be mistaken for one of the mad scientist of the 14th century.

He is so skinny and walks as if he is directed by the wind. A single meal a day is all he can live on, and it is a blessing in disguise if he is fortunate enough to get two a day. He wanders around the streets everyday begging and at times for long hours just to have a dollar for bread. Living on the streets is not an easy thing for him and he gets into fights most of the time with guys bigger and far older than him. He once got into a fight with a man bigger than him and got the beating of his life. His face was so sore, blood was coming from his nose and ears. Fortunately, he was saved from that fight by another homeless man named Jones who came to his rescue. Since then, Jones had always looked after him.

Mark has no other family, except the ones at the foster care. Since he turned 18, he has been living in the streets of New York because he was never adopted by his foster care family. He had attempted taking his own life twice but to no avail. The first time he tried, he was saved by a bystander and the second time, by hanging but the rope snapped as he fell to the ground. He looked at himself then towards the sky, shook his head as it appears even death had rejected him. He has nowhere to turn rather than just live the remainder of his days like the wretched of the Earth.

One cold Friday night as he walked down the snowy streets with his hands in his pockets shivering like a chicken whose feathers have been plucked off and left in the cold to die, he came across a footpath. He looks up and sees a light from a distance and follows its direction. As he walks closer, he discovers an abandoned house which he makes haste getting into, but he stumbles and hits his head on the snow. He lays there for a while murmuring to himself, “Please, I just want to die please take my life for I cannot walk the face of the Earth anymore, I am tired.” The harshness of the cold brings him back to reality as he quickly staggers up and runs towards the house. It is an incredibly old house with no windows, just a door which hangs at one corner with a small bulb outside. That is the light that drew him to the house. He makes haste getting into the house as he stumbles on the stairs and hits his head once again on the pavement leading towards the stairs. As he slowly picks himself up, he looks towards the half open door and sees a small black book lying in the snow. He picks it up and puts it in his pocket as he enters the semi dark house to look for a warm place to sleep.

The next day, he is at the bridge chewing on a portion of bread given to him by a passerby as his friend Jones walks towards him. “Where were you last night?” asks Jones as he approaches, his hands in his pockets.

“I was trying to look for a warm place to sleep” replied Mark.

“Don’t you run away like that next time, kid,” says Jones as he throws him another portion of bread. “I told you, I gat you on this street” he added as he walks away.

A few days later, Mark lays on an old sofa he found at the house which has now become his bed. He pulls out the little black notebook he had found some days before and opens it. He flips through the pages but finds nothing until he gets to the last page which reads; “to the person who opens this book, you have found a hidden treasure.” He sits upright as he continues reading. “In this house lays a black box which contains $20.000 and if found, the content will be yours.” He searches the whole house for any clues but to no avail.

The next morning, it is so snowy and cold. So cold that he could not even go out to find something to eat. A state of emergency had been declared the night before. He sits down and reads the notebook once more. He looks around and scratches his head. He starts to walk around the small house, looking for anything that could lead him to the box, but nothing seems of the extra ordinary.

He has been living in that house for three weeks now and every time he is there, he looks around for the box but to no avail. One evening, he lays on the sofa as always with the small black notebook in his hands and he flips the pages idly. Suddenly, he wakes up and looks at the sofa on which he is sitting. He pulls the sofa away from its current position but found nothing.

He put his hands on his tiny waist in frustration. He then had a thought; he pulls the cushions from the sofa and there was a small black box in it! He slowly picks up the box and opens it. In it is money made up of hundred-dollar bills! He quickly closes the box and wipes his eyes as he looks around in bewilderment. He places his hands in his mouth to shout but could not find the strength to. He murmurs to himself, “ I can't imagine what I have stubbled on to. All this money for me? Twenty thousand dollars! From living on the streets to twenty thousand dollars!!. A while back, I tried to commit suicide but I failed. So, this was what was instore for me? He opens the box, removes the little black notebook from his pocket, kisses it and gently place it in the box. He carries the box and runs out under the harsh weather. He didn't care how cold it is that day. All he cares about is the fact that he is now twenty thousand dollars rich! What a new beginning this is for him.