@ Duck and Decanter/home
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A couple of weeks ago I talked with Scott Ritchey. Scott runs the Justa Center (The Justa Center is a day center for people over 50 years old and homeless) about which I have posted before (here). We had a good talk about this and that (this being people we know in common and that being local Methodist churches). Then I made the mistake of whining about social justice programs in the area. As a result I was invited to show up at the Justa Center on Thursday mornings. The following Thursday I was having photos taken of my large colon but this week I had no such good excuse and so found myself handing out towels, being polite, and helpful to the clients on Thursday morning.
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Thursday is shower and laundry day except that on this day the washing machine was not functional. Being helpful was difficult because I didn’t have answers for any of the questions I was asked. When I was asked a question I went looking for one of the staff that could give me a clue as to the answer. Being polite is always a stretch for me but I managed to overcome my basic nature. Handing out towels, soap, lotion and occasionally socks was a lot easier. I sat on a stool next to the soap, shampoo and lotion with the signup clipboard and called out names as a shower became available. I say “sat” but “balanced” would be more truthful as one of the four legs was shorter than the other three.
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The staff member that had instructed me in my duties made a point of telling me that some of the clients “were not all there”. I knew that of course but I was glad that she had reminded me of the fact. Years ago the Arizona legislature had decided that taking care of mentally ill was too much of a financial burden on the good taxpayers of Arizona. As a result many people who are not capable of caring for themselves and have no place to be cared for wander the streets of Phoenix.
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Across the room there was a couch with three pictures on the wall behind it. The center one was quite large, dark and if it had any subject or meaning it was hidden to me. It was flanked on either side by two smaller pictures that obviously went together. They were icons in the Greek Orthodox style. They were of two men each with flat, solid halos behind their heads. Growing curious I eventually went over to check them out. The one on the left was of Jesus Christ Liberator. The other was more modern. It was of Martin Luther King of Georgia. I returned to my precarious perch and thought about that in between performing my duties. He was dressed in coat and tie with a placard hung about his neck. The placard had the numerals 7089. Meditating on the pictures I realized that with the two pictures the artist had made a wonderful bold statement and captured the essence of St. Martin.
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I thought about how appropriate the message contained in the art work was for the Justa Center. Those that had imprisoned and then assassinated MLK had also done it to Christ. Those that have condemned people not capable of caring for themselves to living on the streets have done the same.
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I wonder if 7089 was MLK’s number in the Montgomery jail.
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Note: Martin Luther King is recognized as a martyr by the Episcopal Church in the United States of America and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
