- Mark, my basement tenant, is in his 50s. He lives alone and keeps to himself. His blinds stay down, and he takes his trash out after dark. I never had any issues with him. He only asked that I never visit without warning.
Then the rent stopped, and he began avoiding me. On the tenth, I knocked. My heart sank when I saw three small backpacks lined up beside his door.
His sister had suddenly lost her apartment, so Mark had taken in her three children while she searched for work. He had spent his rent money on food, school supplies, and bus tickets. The kids were sitting on the floor doing homework because he only owned one chair.
Mark kept apologizing while trying to block my view of the room.
I told him we could discuss the rent next month. Then I went upstairs, brought down my folding table, and left it outside his door with four chairs. He never mentioned it. The following morning, I found one of the children’s drawings taped to my mailbox.
