Requiem to an Artist
I planned to write something lighthearted, sharing with you the joy that is religious life. But then something happened. At our staff meeting this morning at Women’s Hearth, a drop-in day shelter in Spokane, we were told that Stephanie, a regular visitor to the Hearth, had died. A waste management truck accidentally ran over her as she lay sleeping near the entrance to a treatment plant, hidden from view under plastic sheeting, cardboard, a blanket. Stephanie was only 53. She was homeless, but you should know she was so much more than that. I’d like you to meet the Stephanie I came to know through sitting and talking with her, in listening to her. She didn’t always make sense. On the other hand, she often did . She was extremely intelligent; she was genuine; she was real; and she was a fantastic artist. One day I saw her coloring furiously on an inside-out sweatshirt. With her permission, I watched as she created th...