1113 Beyond concrete and plastic

Have you ever seen someone putting out such effort that you wanted to stop and shake her hand or give him an award ribbon? Yesterday I saw two such people.

1) A Chinese immigrant (and I'm sure this was her ethnicity and status) who works in the shopping center at Jasonway and Bethel in Columbus was carrying water across the parking lot to water a garden she had built on the narrow grassy strip between the parking lot and road. The soil was mounded up inside planks and she'd probably purchased and brought it there, and the little plot was about 6' x 6'. I don't know if it is a vegetable garden or a flower garden because the plants are only about 6 inches high and I was traveling about 35 mph. I'm guessing she carries water to it every morning before starting work (I saw her about 7:30 a.m.), or takes it there during her break.

2) While passing through Delaware, Oh I saw a man laboriously walking behind his wheelchair through a grassy field--about the size of a football field, only not as well groomed. He was moving each leg with great effort. If you've ever tried to wheel a bicycle through grass, you get the idea how difficult this was for him. I've seen disabled people push their wheelchairs on sidewalks or in malls for exercise, but never in a bumpy field of weeds. Whether his car was at one end or the other, he'd have to make the trip across and back.