Greece: Alexandros Papaderos

Robert Fulghum visited an institute on Crete devoted to reconciling Germans and Cretans.

At the end of a lecture he asked the director, Alexandros Papaderos, what the meaning of life was. Laughter followed, and people stirred to go. Papaderos looked at him for a long time, asking with his eyes if he was serious and saw that he was.

"I will answer your question." Taking his wallet from his hip pocket, he fished out a small round mirror, the size of a quarter.

Then he said, "I was a small child during the war. One day, on the road, I found the broken pieces of a mirror. I kept the largest piece. This one. I began to play with it and became fascinated that I could reflect light into dark places where the sun would never shine - deep holes, crevices, dark closets.

"I kept the little mirror, and as I became a man, I grew to understand that this was not just a child's game but a metaphor for what I might do with my life. I am a fragment of a mirror whose whole design I do not know.

"With what I have, I can reflect light - truth, understanding , knowledge - into the black places in the hearts of men. I can change some things in some people. Perhaps others may see and do likewise.

This is what I do."

(From What Love Is All About)

USA: Trevor Ferrell

In December 1983, 11 year old Trevor Ferrell saw a TV news report on Philadelphia's inner-city homeless.

The young boy couldn't believe people actually lived on the streets. When he questioned his parents, Frank and Janet reluctantly agreed to broaden their son's sheltered horizons - and their own.

They left their home in an exclusive suburb and drove downtown. One block past city hall, they spotted an emaciated figure crumpled on a sidewalk grate. While his parents watched a bit apprehensively, Trevor got out of the car and approached the man.

"Sir," he said, "here's a blanket for you."

The man stared up at Trevor at first. Then, he softly said, "Thank you, God bless you."

That encounter altered the Ferrells' lives forever. Night after night they drove downtown, trying in small ways to help the street people. They emptied their home of extra blankets, clothing, and dozens of peanut-butter sandwiches.

When others learned what they were doing, someone donated a van and volunteers started helping.

Young Trevor found himself explaining what they were doing to the local media, then to the nation. Pat Robertson, Merv Griffin, Mother Teresa, Ronald Reagan - all wanted to meet the small boy with the big mission. He told them simply, "It's Jesus inside of me that makes me want to do this."

(From What Love Is All About)

Two decades later:
Philadelphia City Paper followed up his life story with an article: Trevor's All Grown Up: Twenty years later, he's still looking out for the homeless..

Trevor's Campaign for the Homeless: their website

Prologue

Oh dear! What a pompous way to begin this blog. "Prologue".

But well, I set up this blog, because I've always loved to hear stories, especially stories of very ordinary people doing extraordinary things. And so, I had this idea today of documenting one story of each individual I happen to cross paths with.

"God must love the common man, because He made so many of them."
Abraham Lincoln