lenny.

I learned today that my friend Lenny, aka caveman, died this past saturday.
My heart is heavy for the loss but I am relieved that Lenny is now free from the pain of alcholism and street life.

I met Lenny six years ago at the Mustard seed, a homeless shelter in downtown Calgary. I only knew his street name, Caveman, for about two years. It was in a rare moment of sobriety that he told me his real name. Lenny did, indeed, look a bit like a caveman. He was blind in his right eye, so wore a black pirate-like patch over it. His hair was long, wild, and scraggly and his bushy beard often had remnants of food in it. He had a wildly decorated stick he used as a cane and wore the same clothes for weeks at at time. I have seen people cross the street to avoid him, I crossed the street to meet him.

Despite his "rugged" appearance and almost constant state of drunkennes, Lenny had a soft heart and an engaging personality. I think even the police liked him. He was well-known and well-liked by paramedics and downtown clinic staff. In fact, I was behind Lenny in line at the downtown medical clinic a few weeks ago. The staff greeted him like an old friend, or a prodigal son. They treated him and let him sober up in the waiting area. As we left the clinic together, Lenny wished me well on my journey to Kenya. I wished him well period.

I will have a moment of silence today in rememberance of my friend Lenny.