Finding Home
Boom! The thunder roared as the rain came down in bucket loads. Adam tried to press himself closer against the tree for protection from the cold. It had been raining since midday and now it had been dark for a long time. Adam had spent the last four years of his life homeless in Central Park, often times taking cover from the storms that were frequent visitors to New York City. The cold sting of the rain was a painful reminder of the home he used to have, before his family left him. Until he was eight years old, he lived in an orphanage that provided nothing but the bare necessities of living. He survived, but longed for a home with parents that would love and care for him. Finally his wish was granted when a young couple, who couldn’t have kids of their own, came and took him in. Never before had he been so happy, and life was great, until the baby came just a year after Adam’s arrival. Suddenly, they didn’t have time for him, and before he knew it, his room was packed up and his family was gone. Adam, however, was left behind. With nowhere to go and no one to go to, he found refuge beneath a large tree in Central Park. Where he once played with his loving father, he now called home, Central Park.
Crack! Another flash of lightning split the sky, bringing Adam back into reality. Though the storm raged on, he still needed to make his rounds of the park to find something to eat. Half way around, he saw a wallet lying on the pavement. Looking around, he searched for a possible owner, but found the park to be deserted due to the storm. Curiosity overwhelmed him, and he looked in the leather bindings to see what he could find. To Adam’s amazement, he found a large amount of dollar bills that, though he could not count, he knew was a significant amount. As he continued to search the wallet, he came across a photograph on one of the many cards that were inside the wallet. It was a man with brown hair that was neatly combed to one side, with an oval like head. He looked to be a middle aged man with slight crinkles around his eyes, showing the many times that he laughed, and a thin, sophisticated, mustache that lay across his upper lip. That’s when he saw the smile that must have accompanied the laughing, crinkled, eyes on this unknown man. It was large, bright, full, and real. There didn’t seem to be anything hidden behind that smile, no secrets or hidden anger. When Adam first saw the wallet, especially all the money inside, he was sure that this was his chance to finally get enough to eat or perhaps buy some bedding that would make the long and lonely nights somewhat tolerable. However, the face of this man was so great and filled with love that Adam could hardly think of doing something so terrible to someone who looked so kind. It was in that moment, as he walked back to his home under the tree, that Adam decided that he would do all he could to return the wallet to its owner.
   The next morning Adam awoke to search the park for the man. Face after face he saw, but none were the man. Throughout the morning, he scoured the park for anyone who even resembled the man, but he could find no one. From afternoon until late into the night, he continued his search with no success. Defeated and upset, he walked back to his tree hoping for better luck in the morning.
Adam woke with new determination and decided that only looking through the park was not enough. He would have to start covering the streets and stores if he were to find the man with the missing wallet. From early morning until midday, he continued to search the park. After this fruitless search, he decided to put his new plan to the test. He walked throughout the streets that circled the park, in and out of stores, even down the alleyways that were known to be dangerous, all for this man who he had never met. Tired, sore, and utterly out of hope he shuffled down the streets to his tree, without having found the man, and decided that he would only search for one more day.
The third and final day arrived, and once again, he began his search with the sunrise. It was different this time though, the drive he had felt before was no longer alive inside of him. His feet dragged across the ground rather than the skip in his step that he had on the first two days. His hunger was also eating away at his spirits and he knew that it was a one in a million chance for him to ever find this man. But he started his search anyway, beginning in the park as usual.  His search through the park was uneventful and he was about to begin searching the streets when he noticed a large crowd of people milling around a wooden stage. He almost disregarded it, but something told him that there was someone important in this gathering. He pushed his way through the crowd, searching every face for the radiant smile that he had memorized from the wallet. As he came to the front of the crowd and looked to the stage, he saw the same wrinkled yet loving eyes that belonged to the man. There was no doubt that this was the man whom he had spent the last few days searching for. The immense joy that overcame him was so powerful that he couldn’t stop himself from jumping on to the stage and simply staring up at the man whose shocked face was looking back at him.
“Is there something I can do for you? Do you need help?” asked the man in a patient and friendly tone. Adam was at a loss of words and simply reached into his pocket and pulled out the brown, leather wallet. Bewildered, and slightly suspicious, the man looked from Adam to the wallet that Adam held out to him, and back knowing that this was the wallet he had lost three days ago. Seeing this look of suspicion begin to creep its way into the man’s eyes, Adam cleared his throat and recounted his last few days of searching for the man and how he came across the wallet. His emotions spilled over and he told the man of his life story, from the orphanage to the tree that he now called home. The man stood in silence for a moment, processing all that this young, determined boy had said to him. Moments, which seemed like hours, passed and Adam began to wonder if this was the right choice after all. Then a smile began to form on the man’s face accompanied by a joy so great, that Adam couldn’t have imagined it in his wildest dreams. With tears in his eyes, the man knelt down next to Adam and took him into a warm embrace, the likes of which Adam had not felt for years.
“You have been through so much and coming across this wallet would have been a miracle for anyone in your position. You could have spent the money and bought so many things to make your life easier, and I would not have blamed you if you had. But instead, you searched for days for an owner you had never met or owed anything to.” said the man as the tears rolled down his cheeks. “Since this wallet could have provided you with so much, returning it should bring you even more. My home is open to you if you would like to come and live with my wife and I who would love to have a child again, since all of ours have moved out, especially one with your honesty, determination, and kindness.”
This was an offer that Adam never expected to ever find in his life again, and as the tears flowed from his eyes he simply said, “Thank you sir, that would be amazing.”
The man stood up and said, “My name is Mayor Trent Green, but you can call me dad if you like.”
Taking Adam by the hand he lead him off the stage, and as they walked, Adam recognized the same joy that came from the man filled his heart as well, and he knew that the three day search for the mayor was really a three day search for his home.