He was labelled as homosexual, drug addict, and HIV positive.
He lived in a single room, the same address for sixteen years.
The odor from his body, rotting for days, alerted the neighbors to his death.
In cleaning out his room, the authorities found photographs, drawings, poems, newspapers, and articles of clothing.
Everything went into disposal bags, including the man.
Let us awaken !
How many steps away, into oblivion, all is to stay?
Dust to dust, rust to rust, what we thought we must.
Let us awaken, to life of Christian consecration;
Before we are buried, in possessions we married.
When I learned of the plight of that dear soul, it made me think we live as if our possessions and our actions, outside of consecration to God, merit meaning. They do not. May God have mercy on that man; I pray he found Christ before his demise.
Read more articles by Bryan Rudolph or search for articles on the same topic or others.