The War Veteran turned millionaire
Veeraswamy Krishnaraj
September 14, 2016
NLW was a Vietnam war veteran. He fell on
hard times upon his return from war. He earned his purple heart
and kept it hidden so his fellow street mates did not steal it
to buy a beer or a meal. Yes, he lived on the streets of NYC.
He called himself Norman. No one knew his first, middle
or last name. No one knew he was a veteran.
Yes, he fell through the cracks and the safety nets did
not catch him. He had
his possessions in a supermarket wagon, walked and slept on the
streets of NYC.
His trusted street mates kept a watch on
his possessions when he went to the public lavatories for
personal hygiene. He was seen in the middle of the night taking
a dip at the public fountains. In his younger days, he wore
natty clothes. That habit stayed with him even to this day.
Sometimes he was seen to wear nice ties given to him by some
good souls just for asking.
Sometimes he picked up nice clothes and shoes from
clothing donation bins. He never took clothing from bins to make
a buck for himself. He took what he needed.
Some supermarkets gave
away unsaleable dented cans containing ready to eat meals,
cooked beans…; the customers won’t’ pay to buy them.
He had a bad experience in one of the
homeless shelters on a wintry night. His fellow inmates beat him
up, stole all his meager possessions and left him naked on the
floor.
He never hesitated to get free meals in
these centers but never stayed there overnight.
He had a friend and a buddy soldier for a
good Samaritan. He lived upstate NY.
His friend was a Wall street businessman. He offered to
support NLW, but he would not accept his help.
He is a businessman now
because NLW saved his life during war.
The indignities of living on the streets
took a toll on him. People spat on him. The children taunted
him. The street mates stole from him. The merchants treated them
like plague. He hid from police vans, which took him and others
to the shelter on cold days.
One day, lacking proper meals in two days,
he was walking unsteady on the streets near Madison Square
Garden. That time, a man for himself bought his sandwich from a
shop. As he was about to eat it, this man with unsteady gait was
walking by. The man
gave him the sandwich, which our street dweller took graciously
and showed a flicker of gratitude on his face.
Months and years went by for NLW on the NYC
streets. One day a scrap of paper attracted his attention. He
picked it up and checked the numbers. They all matched. He
called his friend and told him about it. The friend accepted to
cash the lottery ticket for him and took the offer of 2% of the
lotto money for himself.
NLW is a rich man now, lives in an upscale
neighborhood, did not forget his days on the street.
Now he dresses nattily, sleeps on his own
bed, takes warm showers, still eats out of cans and boxes and
runs a shelter for the homeless. The wall street friend got
a double bonus from the homeless street walker: his life and
riches.
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