I’m not sure what the law in New York is any more about pan handling in the subways, but the creativity around the need to acquire funds is all over the place! The stations are alive with fabulous hoopla and if there’s room in a subway car, one rarely has a breather from someone singing or story-telling or dancing or juggling, but as the pitch level is usually amped up and one’s senses are on overload, the capacity to enjoy is limited.
Yesterday amidst the joggle, a young man called ‘Attention everyone!’ and though most passengers were already engaged in conversation or in their own heads, he softened his voice and said “I don’t have any talents that are marketable here, I wish I did, though I’m not sure that I’d have the nerve that all of the other guys have to sing in your faces even if I did, and I don’t have a dramatic long sad story. I simply don’t have any money. I’m trying to get a job and I’m trying to figure everything out, but in the meantime I need help. If you can help me, I’d appreciate it.”
I was moved by the honesty and courage that this little speech took. And though he went out with only one contribution to his hat, I have a feeling that he will figure things out.