Manny Ramirez

I can't believe it's taken me this long to write here again. Perhaps this summer will help change things.

I finally thought of a specific person to write about, but now a flood of others comes to mind as I remember the purpose of this blog. I shall start with Manny, and then hopefully I'll get around to the others.

Manny was sitting in Civic Center Park. He loves the Rockies, and was listening to the game when I and three junior high types came and offered him a sandwich. He gladly took it and then I asked if we could sit and talk with him.

"Oh no, I'm okay," he said.

"Are you sure?" I asked. "We'd love to get to know you."

He paused. "You couldn't handle me. I would just pick your brain."

"Well bring it," I responded by sitting indian style before him.

Dramatic pause. "All right then," Manny said. "Who is God?"

Dramatic pause again. I thought about what his angle might be. Was he just trying to pick a fight? Was he a hardcore atheist who knew we were church people and wanted to deflate us? Or was he truly questioning?

I admit to being afraid at this point especially because of the three kids with me. I didn't want this to get messy. I just wanted to encourage, and to show how you can get to know strangers. So I began to talk about how I believed that God made the world. I talked about the first two people on the earth and how they messed up, but that God cared so much about people that he sent Jesus to--

"Oh good," Manny interrupted. "I was just making sure you knew. I believe that too!"

Enter sigh of relief. From there the conversation was about who this man was and what life for him was like. As he wore shiny Aviators, I asked if he would take them off so we could see his eyes. They were a light brown, and his face sort of had an ape look to it. He was wiping tears from his eyes.

"Can I ask you to pray for something for me?" he asked.

"Of course," all four of us said in unison.

Manny's girlfriend had just passed away a couple months ago. Recently he's really been struggling with the loss as they had been close friends for twelve years by the point of her death. He hasn't had many he could talk to about it, and he told us that our presence meant so much to him. "You give me a chance to talk about what's been burning inside me," he said.

"I know God loves me though," he said. "A lot of hard things have happened to me lately, but God has also given me the opportunity to finally live in a home again." Manny will be living in Section 8 housing within the next couple of weeks.

Manny also talked about his few belongings. His bike was propped up against the nearby tree, and he had a backpack with a pair of clothes.

"I also carry around my Bible, the book of Mormon, and Harry Potter," he said.

My mind raced. Uh-oh.

"Why do you have the book of Mormon?" I pried.

"Oh, they come around here all the time. I have it so that they won't give me another one and won't bother me. If they think I believe the crap they do, then they leave me alone."

Sorry, but this moment definitely deserves a chuckle. Well said!

But the best moment, well, other than the fact that we prayed as a group (holding hands) not once but twice, was the time where Manny was sharing something from the Bible that he loved. He was mid-sentence when he said, "Excuse me," got up, and peed at a nearby tree. When he sat down he picked back up right where he started. That takes skill!

Any way, I met Manny Ramirez, 54, and that is my story. Pray for him as he is preparing to pull his life together after the loss of a loved one. He hopes that getting housing will help him get prepared to go back to college.