Beauty displaced
I drive to work every morning by taking the Julia Tuttle to the Biscayne Boulevard exit. At the traffic light, there is a dilapidated house next to a parking lot.
Every day I would see an older gentleman, taking care of some plants I had seen him put on the ground. He would hose them every day and move the dirt around, accompanied by a beautiful rooster. I had seen some workers cleaning up the place and hauling trash. I always wanted to lower my window as I waited for the light and say: “You’re doing a good job.” But I never did.
Recently, when I got to my exit and looked at his house, I saw that a fence had been erected around it and a sign that said “demolition” posted. No sign of the old gentleman or the beautiful rooster.
What happened to him? Is he now homeless? I cried all the way to work..
Carmen Oruna, Miami Beach
This story was originally published December 30, 2014 at 6:43 PM with the headline "Beauty displaced."