I have an awful, daunting, time consuming habit of always being early. The thought of missing a deadline, missing a train, keeping someone waiting is too much guilt for me to digest. An hour early, waiting to board my train to Memphis, I was stuck in Chicago, in the most uninspired station yet. Nothing to do but sit on the edge of a fountain and hope 60 minutes feels like 45. Sitting next to me, a few feet down was an older African American woman who looked unkempt and I assumed could possibly be homeless. She had a rag covering her hair and a garbage bag holding her blanket. This is when I began my new ritual with wishing fountains. Out of sheer boredom I looked at the fountain that was behind him, felt the weight of my change purse and figured two things equal one. Fountain + penny= wish. I pulled out all the pennies I had and carelessly made a wish with each one and threw in a penny to go along with it. The unkempt woman next to me saw what I was doing and told me it seemed like a good idea. She began digging in her bag, in a very desperate way, searching and searching for even just one penny. When I saw what she was doing I stopped her, told her I had some to spare and gave her three pennies to use as she wished. Then I watched her. With each penny she had, she would do the same. Hold it in her hand, make a strong, tight fist, close her eyes, squeezed her lids and focused. So still and so determined, as if she were reaching out to God, having a conversation. Asking him/her to grant her this one wish and in return she would sacrifice this penny. With this one with her life and the lives of others around her will be greater and life will no longer seem like a steep, uphill sloop to climb. Her hard days would be behind her and she could finally breath. Three times she had this focus, three times she ad this determination, three times she had hope and three times she gave a sacrifice, all she had to give. When it was all over she looked at me and said thank you. I told her I hope all her wishes come true, and she told me they have to, they are very important. She is why I started this ritual and continue it in every city I travel, in respect of her wishes, in respect of her battles.