Seasons Greetings

By Eric Smith

A wave of the hand is as simple of a gesture as there is. The actions they carry out and the messages they thereby convey, are every bit as essential to truth as words spoken from the mouth.

One South Kansas City man, who prefers to go simply by James, is using the simple act of waving to strangers, to carry a message of love and hope that started during one of the most terrifying moments of collective uncertainty in recent history.

“I seemed to notice during COVID, as I was out and about that as I was walking and noticing everything from people…I noticed that everybody had a scowl on their face. Peering into windshield of a car, you could see that,” James recalls. “So, I decided to just start waving at cars. And as I started waving at cars, I was just asking the Lord to bless these people.”

Now, nearly six years, and by James’ own estimations between 2,000 and 2,500 cars-waved-at later, his constant commitment to being a small, positive part of the community’s daily pulse hasn’t regressed one bit.

On his walks about town, James can frequently be seen State Line Road or frequently near Avila University and Red Bridge. He said the vast majority of the interactions he’s had are positive. Not all, though, but it’s in those unfriendly few and those moments that instead of losing heart, he doubles down on his beliefs and his mission.

“It actually gives me a little bit more,” James said. “The Bible is pretty clear about that…to not just love our enemies but bless them too.

“And they’re not an enemy, as far as I’m concerned, they’re just a person that’s a little bit more lost. And, therefore, I want to love on them a little bit more, so I bless them a little bit more.”

Blessings are, after all, what James is doing this for. As the unrelenting cold carries bitterly onward through the holidays with no reprieve until the onset of Spring, James’ simple act of daily kindness, born of a sincere desire to see everyone in the world be a little nicer to one another.

James’ reach extends beyond just his interactions with motorists, deeper into the community where he also assists several members of the homeless community facing winter’s icy temperatures with the least tools and resources to keep them at bay.

Among the things James lists as good ways to help the homeless this time of year is to opt for fast food gift cards to hand out in lieu of cash. Blankets, clothing, footwear, all are needed, but there’s one additional thing that James recommends doing that doesn’t cost a single cent.

“Get their name (ask them) ‘Who am I speaking to?’” James said.

James prefers to keep his last name private because his message transcends his name or his image. He enjoys the various interactions, the familiarity, the acquaintances, the stories all help James know that his message of love and kindness is making an impact.

Nonetheless, bad days still happen and doubt, inevitably, gnaws. But, once again, James finds opportunity, even in those dark moments, hearkening back to a lesson he happened upon while in Japan.

“They have a restaurant’s saying, ‘What we did today, we’ll do better tomorrow,’ I kind of like that saying,” James said. “There’s going to be times you’re getting better and then times you’re going to feel like you went into an old valley. Well, when you’re in that valley, you learn to look up. That’s where the light is.”

That’s why, along with his trademark wave, he incorporates one other motion that brings his message full circle. It’s simple and carries a weight of sincerity as graciously tremendous as it is subtle.

“So, I actually wave, and when they wave back at me, I point (at them) to identify that I see them,” James said, “and then I point straight up.”