Everybody can sing...

I am back in Arad, my hometown, for a few days. I sit in my parked car, while talking on the phone and observing the world go by. Two people catch my attention.

A homeless man, a few meters in front of me, sitting on the sidewalk and reaching into a pond on the street to wash his hands and arms. From where I am, I can see the grey dirty water glittering under the hot August sun. I turn my head away. What a miserable condition…

A girl passes by on the sidewalk: blonde hair, incredibly short and tight pants, strident make-up, golden flip-flops. I instantly recognize what we’d call here a “pitipoanca” - an untranslatable derisive term. I know there’s likely not much about her besides her appearance… She looks at the homeless guy and enters a store.

I finish my phone conversation and go to retrieve some cash. As I exit the bank, the girl comes out of the nearby grocery store with a bottle of water. She goes to the homeless man, talks to him, and then starts pouring water so he can now clean his feet.

I am humbled.