In my hometown there was a woman known as the Crazy Lady. Her house backed up to a major street and had a wooden fence. She had conspiracy theory signs and graffiti on the fence. She would sit or stand near the top of the fence and yell at passing cars. I think that she might have even thrown things at cars.
Recently, I heard a little bit of her story. Apparently, she was from another country and had lived a normal life until her husband died. She blamed a nearby industrial site for her husband’s death. After hearing her story, she became a person not that Crazy Lady. She was a widow in need of someone who cared. Before there had never been a reason for me to interact with her. Guess I thought she was someone else’s responsibility. I never took the time to see her as a person that God cared about or in need. Then it hit me how many other times am I too busy with my life to really care about others or take the time to even see those in need around me?
36 “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” 37Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 38This is the first and greatest commandment. 39And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” (Matthew 22:36-40, New International Version)
The Dee Zone 
I am fascinated by what I call “Town Characters, i.e. the Crazy Lady, for the very reason you get at when you mention her back story. Everyone tends to know of these Town Characters, but few of us really “know” them. My entire Greenville book revolves around this idea of a Town Character. Even though I’ve written one book about Town Characters, I don’t think I’ve explored the idea as fully as I can. I’m sure one will pop up again in my writing. 🙂
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Town characters are interesting. Yes, she was rather well known even in a very large city.
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