Dale (#610) 06-04-14

This one has been in the queue for quite a while. I was a little uncomfortable with the encounter, and I wasn't sure that I would ever post it. But three months have past, and all seems well.

I was with three other photographers on my favorite Sarasota street. With peripheral vision, I saw Dale approaching on a bicycle. We made eye contact and he said “Hello,it looks like some photographers!” I affirmed his observation and said, “Guess what I like to photograph?”, and went through my spiel. Dale was OK with that, but said that he needed something. The local Salvation Army charged $10/night and he needed some money for board (he said this to all four of us.) Dale's presentation was pretty polished.

We made a modest contribution and I got a few shots. When he saw the image on the LCD he said that he needed it for his Facebook page – could I send it to his Facebook account. He doesn't have regular e-mail. I had no problem with the concept, but wasn't sure how to do it. I later looked up his name in Facebook; there are lots of Dale Roberts', but none appeared to be him.

Then Dale “God Blessed” us all, and said that God provides what he needs. He didn't have transportation but God provided the bicycle. He found it that morning, and not finding an owner, assumed that God had given it to him. I had noticed that it seemed small for him, but I looked more closely. It was a nearly new, girl's bike. Hmmm...

Bob