As the saying goes, it’s what’s on the inside that counts. And that goes for a broken heart too. But even sometimes a broken heart brings smiles. As it did a few days ago. A line of people quickly formed at our Pop-Up Pongo. That’s when we head out into the community stocked with food, pet gear and some extra special things for our community’s most fragile people. We don’t announce these moments. We just do them. The goal is to provide an extra boost to people and pets when they need it most. The numbers are not important. But helping is.

This recent Pop-Up Pongo brought about 30 people to the back of my car. Spirits were high despite the rainy and cloudy weather. But one man touched me more than the others. He stood off to the side. After a few minutes he moved farther away, now across the street. He sat down on his pack and appeared to be watching us. I didn’t know why. He spoke with no one. He just sat and watched. He talked to himself. He laughed a little. He cried a little. That scene repeated itself several times.

The work we do is not perfect. But neither is the world. But being there to offer help is the best we can do. Sometimes we don’t know what help is needed. Sometimes it doesn’t matter. A kind word. A smile. A bag of food. Whatever it is, we try. Because the single kind word offered to one silently searching for a kind word may be the one word that changes everything.

As I was getting ready to leave this man began to stir. He picked up his pack and walked toward me. I sensed that he wanted to say something but wanted to do it quickly and privately, away from the others. But what he had to say was not what I expected.

As he walked closer I smiled and said hello, as I had done dozens of times during the past hour. He inched closer, cheeks wet but not from rain. His eyes told me he was hurting. I don’t know how old he was, but old enough to have lived a good chunk of life.

He opened his pack and pulled out a bag of our Pongo cat food. He said in the most kindly way that he did not need it anymore. He asked if I would give it to someone else. Then he cried.

His cat had passed away a few weeks earlier. He was about 15 years old. He said he’d found him one day and they became best friends. He said his cat was not doing well and he sensed it was because he was living on scraps and whatever food people gave him. But that all changed when he found The Pongo Fund.

So for the last few years he fed him food only from The Pongo Fund that he received at several places around town that we supplied with food. His cat thrived. And seeing his cat thrive, he said he thrived too. As his voice trailed off, he said that without our food he didn’t know what they would have done.

He said his kitty was his best friend. And that even though he had seen men die in war, he was more broken-hearted over the loss of his best friend than any other time in his life. Here was this man, this solid United States Veteran standing tall, sobbing in front of me over the loss of his kitty cat friend that had died weeks earlier. And I didn’t know what to do, because there was more to this broken-heart then could be mended in that moment.

He told me stories about things they did. They had routines. They lived life as a team. And now that team had changed. As he spoke he continued to hold the small bag of Pongo cat food. Massaging it in his hands. But he did it ever so gently. And I could tell that bag of food was worth far more to him than just a bag of food. I asked him if it reminded him of his cat. He said yes. So I asked him why he wanted to give it back to me now. And that’s when I pretty much lost it.

Because, he said, he knew there were lots more hungry cats out there. And he knew that the bag he had left over could feed another cat. And he thought that was the right thing to do. But I knew giving me back that single bag of food would be like taking his cat away all over again. So I offered a compromise.

I moved some things around in my car and showed him some large bags of cat food. I explained that I take the large bags and transfer the food into smaller bags. And I told him that I needed to pack some more food. Would he help me do that? Would he help me do that in memory of his cat?

So there we stood. Two adult men talking about kitty cats, kibble and best friends. Laughing. Crying. Packing kibble the entire time. And before we knew it we had another few dozen bags.

I made sure he had a warm, dry place to sleep for the next couple of nights. Helped him with some other things too. Good food to eat. A book. Socks. Hat. Gloves. A new sleeping bag. And one more thing too. I gave him a bell. A little tiny bell that a cat would wear on its collar.

I’m not sure why, but it was in my car. Maybe it was there waiting for this very moment. And I asked him if he would like to carry that little bell with him in his pocket to maybe remind him of his kitty? He laughed and stepped back and smiled and said no, that seemed silly. He did not need the bell, shaking his head side-to-side for emphasis.

We shook hands. We thanked each other for being there. We said a prayer for his cat. He put his pack on and took the first step to leave. Then he turned around and asked me for the bell. He stared at it for a second. But he really stared at it deeply. I could tell at that moment that he saw more than just a bell.

And he held it tight in his hand as he walked away.

Thanksgiving is just a few days away. All donations to The Pongo Fund are being doubled, and we need your support now because we can’t do this work without you. So please, can you help us? Click here to give: https://giveguide.org/#thepongofund%20 .

Being there for them when they need us most. Even when their pets are no longer here with them.

And this is why we Pongo.

Sit. Stay. Eat. Live. thepongofund.org

***The Pongo Fund is Oregon’s Pet Food Bank. Because hungry people have hungry pets. Our award winning and volunteer driven group helps more animals than any other group in Oregon by providing high quality food and vital veterinary care for the family pets of anyone in honest need, keeping them safe, healthy and out of the shelters. 90,000 animals helped; 9,000,000 healthy meals provided. We would be honored if you SHARE this post so that others will also know of our good work***

(This story has been reposted due to special request. Cat in photo is not cat in story)