Mario and his menagerie
Not too long ago I went to Vermont for the wedding of my dear friends Ben & Amanda. Since I live in southeast Michigan the quickest way to get there is to go through Canada. I decided to head up to Montreal and then down in to Vermont for the wedding. This isn’t about the wedding but someone I met along the way.
I met Mario on the street in Montreal when he walked past the cafe that I was sitting in. What caught my eye was the animals that he had with him. He was pushing a huge cart covered in a white tarp. On top of the cart at the front was a black cat. It had a majestic bearing and reminded me of a figurehead on a ship. Behind Mario were seven dogs all attached to leashes which were attached to Mario’s belt. It was an amazing site to say the least. I decided to head outside to see if I couldn’t get some pictures of Mario and his animals.
The first thing you need to know is that Mario is homeless. He agreed to let me take some pictures of him and his animals. Mario’s dogs were the most well behaved animals that I have ever seen. They didn’t once bite, bark or act out in any way which is a lot more than I can say for most of the pampered pets that I’ve seen on the street. Mario was incredibly friendly and he asked, when I had finished if he gave me his email address if I would send him copies of the photos. At that moment I decided that I really was living in the 21st century, when someone can be homeless but have an email address.
On my way home from the wedding I passed back through Montreal but I didn’t see Mario. On the train from Montreal to Windsor I met a woman travelling with her five year old daughter. I told them about Mario and his menagerie and she told me that she knew about Mario. Seems that her husband worked in the neighborhood that Mario spent a lot of time in. I learned from her that Mario had begun with a single dog and had rescued the rest of them after they had been abandoned on the street.
She also told me that since she and her husband owned dogs her husband would sometimes bring in extra kibble for Mario’s dogs when he went to work. As she was telling me this she also told me that she was realizing for the first time that while they send food for Mario’s dogs they had never sent in food for Mario. She was openly embarassed about this.
It was one of those moments that really do make you think. It makes me think about how we live and what we hold to be important. If you are ever in Montreal and see Mario stop and talk to him. He’s worth getting to know.
