I believe his name was Howard

Monday I had an appointment at Northwoods Center. As I walked through the front door I noticed an older gentleman seated in a wheel chair near the door. He was wearing an blue jacket that had seen it's better days and his head was hanging with his eyes mostly closed. There was an alarm clip fastening him to the wheel chair in case he tried to stand. I was a little early so I sat on a chair next to the man.
"Is it all right if I sit here?"
"Yeah, but it'll cost ya!"
"How much?"
"That depends!"
"Do you like it here?"
"Hard to say"
"Are you from around here?"
"I'm from all over."
I could see he was starting to perk up so I continued the conversation. He was a long distance trucker going from Mexico all the way to Alaska. That started all the stories about his adventures on the road and the Alaskan Highway leading to Nome and how it had been roughly built during the war years then repaired and brought up to standard in later years. He really was a wealth of interesting information.
The person I was to meet came to greet me so I said good-by to the old guy and shook his hand. His eyes were now bright and fully open.
When it was time for me to go there he was sitting the same as when I first saw him. I stopped, shook his hand again, and told him what a pleasure it had been meeting him. He smiled and shook my hand back. As I left his head again started to droop. He was sinking back into his own lonely world after the short reprieve.
What a lonely life for this old gentleman. I wonder how many just need a little stimulation to brighten their world.
Ken