There is an old man who works cleaning up trash on the streets of Cologne outside my apartment. He is dressed just like his colleagues, wearing an orange vest and pants. In his hand he carries the standard trash collecting pole and following him is a wheeled cart where he dumps the detritus discarded by the city.
I couldn’t believe what was sticking out of the trash cart as I walked past him. As humans we get surprised by things that shouldn’t be where they are. Adorned on each corner of his cart were flowers, giving the impression they were sprouting from the trash he collected.
Wild flowers, that looked like they grew in the park, were delicately snipped and taped to the corners of his cart, distracting your gaze from what you would expect. The man was smiling while talking with a shop owner at the intersection, without breaking the conversation he gave a cheerful wave to two girls riding bikes passing by him.
Take a moment and think about what you can do within your own life to make your circumstance a little bit more beautiful, to surprise others around you, and to not let what you do define how you are.