The Man With No Teeth............

Every now and then a memory creeps into my mind of someone or something from the past. Many of them I dismiss without further thought but every now and then I make the effort to record them because they have a value worth passing on.

This morning I stooped to give a few gold coins to a homeless man who was offering a tin cup to people as they moved along the footpath. I have no idea as to what he will use the coins for however, I felt better for having given them to him anyway. Some would suggest that homeless people spend their money on alcohol, cigarettes or drugs; others insist that they are a burden on society and contribute to everything which people hate about city life. I have been fortunate enough to have seen another side of a homeless person’s coin.

Back when I was at university in Darwin there was a man with no teeth. To look at him one would not give another thought to him as he simply blended into the crowd, and in a university environment that is easy to do. He wore clean clothes, although they were always badly wrinkled and torn. He always had either a five o’clock shadow or a beard and I later guessed that was because he rarely shaved. One thing that stands out in my memories is the shoes he wore; they actually were not shoes but those old fashioned slippers with the zips at the front. I don’t remember his name in fact; I doubt anyone would remember his name. I thought about it one day and I do not remember him ever telling us his name instead, he simply said to call him Joe.
Joe had no teeth and once told us that he had slept on a park bench during the summer in Melbourne. One evening some youths woke him and beat him within an inch of his life. When he was eventually to leave hospital he would have no front teeth making eatting and talking difficult. Because of his appearance people tended to assume he was uneducated and illiterate as well.

Joe looked like a typical homeless man however the difference was that he was clean. In political studies we all took turns in giving a tutorial and when it came to his week everyone sat in wonderment of how he would present his. Would Joe be capable of speaking in front of a group of students? Had anyone explained to him that he had to do research on the subject and prepare for it? Did he even know anything about public speaking, I wondered. From the look of the other students’ faces they too were wondering similar things. The tutor entered the room and sat down. He took out his folders and book where he was to give marks and commentary on Joe’s performance and content of subject. When I think back all these years later I wonder if even the tutor had doubts about Joe’s abilities before commencement.

Joe took the floor and introduced him and the topic. When he began to speak his English was superb to listen to. He spoke with an eloquence that presented like Queen’s English. He was articulate, expressive and powerfully spoken when he became passionate about the subject, and even with the loss of his front teeth one could still imagine him as Queens council in a court room or perhaps the magistrate. Either way it was a pleasure to sit and listen to him. At the end of his presentation there was a thunderous applause to which he graciously nodded his head and smiled his gummy smile and of course, the talk that evening at the student bar was speculation as to Joe’s background and history. Many suggested that he had indeed been a solicitor or barrister and had had a mental break down. Other theories included a Grammar teacher, a broken doctor cleaned out during a nasty divorce and eventually living in a psychiatric facility. The rumours went on and on however, like all rumours they died down and everyone went on their way leaving Joe in peace. At the end of that semester Joe decided to move south to Adelaide. He must have shaken the hand of every single person he had ever met at that uni, including myself. He had saved enough money for a bus ticket and was looking forward to seeing some more of Australia. His luggage comprised of a small backpack of books and two shopping bags of clothes; all the material possessions he had owned in the world. When asked how he would live once he settled in Adelaide he responded that he would live that same way that he always did; by relying on the kindness of strangers and by enjoying and appreciating each and every day as it came.
Whenever I see a homeless person now I try to remember that every person has their own story and while many rely on alcohol and drugs there are many who have simply seen a different life to what we understand.
Here's cheers to you Joe...where ever you may be.