Leon Age 38
Walking past the Georgia State campus, close to Atlanta Underground everyone looked the same, walked the same and huddled in small groups caught up in conversation. Leon stood out to me; sitting all alone in his ripped blue shirt with his piercing blue eyes, and scruffy look, droopy eyes and all slouched over. This 38 year old man, seemed to have had better days. Leon was soft spoken, harmless, sincere, and one of the nicest people I had met in a while. His story touched me: he had been thrown off of a bridge literally breaking his back. He lost all his money towards surgery, leaving him with like he said “nothing.” In deep contrast with his younger days when traveled across the United States, Arizona being his favorite, describing it as “very nice.”
Peggy Age 77
As I was walking down from Centennial Park towards Atlanta Underground, I watched Peggy struggle along the pavement; a homeless woman raised by a German family in Smyrna, Georgia, now all alone in the city of Atlanta. Despite her 77 years, she was very opinionated, strong hearted, passionate and unapproachable, but opened up when she found out we both shared European roots. When carefully asking her what she did for a living she answered me bluntly “nothing.” Peggy told me her ten years in jail had caused that. But did she seem happy? Happier than most people today; all she needed was 77 cents for a hot chocolate to get herself through the day.
