Sandy was homeless. He had been homeless for more than ten years. I’m not sure where he slept; I’m pretty sure he did not know until it was time to sleep. The homeless are not allowed to panhandle in Chattanooga restaurants, but Sandy was different.

He rode an old bicycle that looked like it had been on its last leg since the first time I met him in 1995. In one hand he carried bundles of flowers that he got from the dumpster of a local florist. These he would sell to get the little bit of money he needed to get by. He would walk into restaurants, coffee shops, and other stores and walk around with his flowers greeting anyone and everyone who would look his way with a great big toothless smile. Most places he came into, instead of immediately tossing him out, the nearest employee would shout for everyone to hear: “How ya doin’ tonight, Sandy?” “I’m happy to be here!” was always his reply.

Even though he always said the same thing, you could see in his eyes, his smile, and the spring in his step that he meant it every time.

Selling these flowers was Sandy’s only source of income, but he would often give them away for free to some unsuspecting lady. If he saw a couple looking nervous, like they were on a first date, he would give the guy a flower and say with a mischievous smile “give this to your lady.” People often asked how much he wanted for the flowers, and he never had a price. He would just say that anything they could spare would be fine.
Whenever Sandy left, the whole place was smiling. It could be raining in sheets outside and so cold that everyone looked down with that blah feeling such days bring about. Sandy would come in wearing clothes that could not have kept him warm or dry enough to be comfortable and he would brighten everyone’s day.

Dan Bowman

Whenever I feel that the task I am working at, or the moment that life has brought me is not worth a smile, I think of Sandy. He had only a bicycle and a few ratty clothes to his name. He had lived a life tougher than I could ever imagine, but somehow he always made me smile. I thought today about how he managed it, and it dawned on me. Without ever speaking it, he taught me to appreciate the moment I had. No matter what was happening in my life, I too could be happy to be here.

Sandy had realized what Lao Tzu taught more than 2600 years ago. “Be content with what you have; rejoice in the way things are. When you realize there is nothing lacking, the whole world belongs to you.”