My Friend Wayne

BY RYAN MIFFLIN

A few weeks prior to this trip – on our Halloween excursion – I met a man who very sheepishly asked for a food pack and a coat. We didn’t have a coat in his size, unfortunately. Before he left, he asked if he could have a couple of Tootsie Rolls from our candy bowl. We gladly obliged. I even commented in my blog that night that it must have been a nice blessing, something as simple and tasty as a Tootsie Roll.

I didn’t realize how much of a little blessing it might have been…

On November 14th, I met the man again. He asked if we had a coat. I thought we did, but it turns out another volunteer had just given the last big men’s coat away. I gave him some extra care packs, though.

I learned the man’s name was Wayne. I learned he’d been released from prison the day before Halloween. He was originally from St. Louis, but had no family at all and nowhere to go. He’d been in jail for a little over 20 years. He’d secured a room in the Salvation Army Harbor Light Shelter and said he liked it pretty well there.

I didn’t talk to Wayne long, but I enjoyed my visit with him. A lot.

Wayne told me that when he was younger, he’d tried to make some fast money. He traveled to Texas and picked up a kilo of cocaine to bring back to St. Louis and sell. He stopped in East St. Louis and got involved in some kind of tussle. He was shot. He shot someone else. And that someone else died. Wayne was sentenced to forty years in prison. He did half of that sentence and was paroled.

Wayne told me that there wasn’t a day that goes by that he doesn’t regret what he did. That’s a phrase you hear a lot of ex-cons say. But I looked this man in the face and I believe with my whole heart that he meant it. He said he was just a dumb kid that made a dumb mistake. And I believe that, too. I often wonder why we can’t be born old and get younger as we go. We need that wisdom that comes with age in the beginning. Seems like we’d progressively enjoy life more if we could be old first, then get young. Instead of dying, we’d just go back to being a helpless infant. Maybe if he’d been old first, Wayne might have missed this error in his life if he’d been old first.

Wayne told me he talked to God every day and that he’s trying to give his sin to Him. I reminded him that the Bible says if we just confess it and let go of it that God doesn’t even remember it.

We had a really nice talk. Wayne was a very, very respectful and nice man and I enjoyed meeting him. I haven’t seen him since that day. I sincerely hope he’s been able to catch some kind of break. Too many guys in his situation either fall back into old habits or feel forced to do something drastic to make some kind of lucky break for themselves. it doesn’t’ usually end well.

I think of Wayne often.