This is my entry into Task #4 of Steemfluencer's Second Writing Challenge. We are instructed to craft a fictional story around a real life person. In this instance one Hristo Atanasov. Hristo is a hero in his own right, and was named Bulgaria's Man of the Year in 2007. He is a successful business owner running a recycling facility, and taking in countless people to his care over the years.
Ya'll know me. I'm an off the reservation type of writer. When I was reading Hristo's story, and before I saw the picture of him, an image sprung to mind almost immediately. Some may consider this a unflattering, or even a rude image, but neither of those is meant at all, in fact quite the opposite.
My first thought was of a movie from 1991. No, not a whole movie, a scene from a movie. In this particular movie a, let's call it a lost soul played by Robin Williams, has his "castle" but it is really a castle made of junk. What other people would call junk. To him, it is priceless, it is home, it is part of his quest to find the Holy Grail. In this instance, One Man's Junk, literally is, another man's treasure.
And isn't that just what Recycling really is? Taking another man's junk and turning it into something precious?
So without any more build up, I present you with:
"Yes, Yes..." Hristo muttered as he walked down the stacks of garbage in the yard, leading a well dressed man in his wake. "I have exactly what it is you are looking for." Hristo stopped, looking back and forth as though to gauge where he was in the yard.
The businessman pulled up just short of hitting Hristo as he paused "Listen... Mac... I really just wanted to save a few bucks, but time is money you know?" The man looked at his expensive watch and tapped his equally expensive dress shoe on the hard packed dirt path. "I really should just be going."
Hristo gave a curt nod, but he really wasn't paying attention to the man. He was lost in the hunt through his treasures. Every bit of bent medal and debris had been painstakingly collected and brought to the property. There was value here, if only others could SEE. "Of Course" he exclaimed and took off at a fast trot down one of the aisles.
The business man gave a huff and an exasperated sigh, "Five more minutes" he offered himself as he quickly followed the nut job down the row until he nearly ran over the man again. He was about to utter a curse of disgust at the man when his breath escaped him and his jaw dropped.
"Engine block is in fine shape see? But former owner didn't care, just bought a new one. Left the rest for me to haul off. Was glad I did. You glad too I am thinking, yes?" Hristo gave the man a huge grin.
The businessman stared down the nearly pristine front end of a perfect match for his own Bentley. The difference being this one looked like the back end had been run over by a bulldozer. But the old man was right, the front was in perfect condition, meaning the parts were viable to fit his own repair needs. "How much?" he asked pulling a check book from his coat pocket.
Hristo gave the man a long level glance "How much you want to pay?" He asked shrewdly. It was a bit of a game that Hristo enjoyed playing with people who thought they were too good to be wandering around recycling yards. He wasn't really a haggler, he just liked to take the measure of the people he was dealing with.
The man muttered to himself, running through prices of different parts. A shop with new parts was going to cost him a fortune. Finally he rattled off a number that was twice what Hristo had hoped to get for the totaled car "Done!" he exclaimed happily. He called over two children who had been playing in the next row of the yard "Boys, go to the house and call Stanze, tell him to pull around the truck to tow this vehicle to whatever address Mr. Numpha indicates."
The two boys ran off, making it a race to see who could reach the house first. "That's really not necessary." Numpha called after the children. "My mechanic can come and strip it where it is." By this time the boys had gone around a corner and off amid the stacks, so the man was hollering at no one.
"Oh please!" Hristo exclaimed, waving his hands dismissively at the man. "It will give Stanze something to do this afternoon, and he will need to go in to the village to be visiting the market." He grinned as he plucked the bills Numpha had taken from his check book from the man's hands.
"Besides" he added as he counted the funds which would feed his residents for a couple of days easily, longer if they were frugal. "The boys will need a ride in to work in the park this evening."
Hristo began walking in the direction the boys had run. Since it would take him back toward the rental car his driver had brought him in, the rich man followed. As they walked the man inquired after why the children would be going to the park in the evening when dark was falling, making casual conversation in an effort to fill the otherwise awkward silence.
Hristo's answer was interrupted as a truck with a tow rig pulled up the hard packed dirt, a young man leaned out the window, presumably Stanze "Where you want it taken Boss?" the young man asked. The rich man rattled off the name of the local repair shop where his Bentley was waiting to be worked on. "Oh sure! Hectre is a good mechanic! Dad saw to his schooling!" The boy drove off, leaving the two men in a cloud of dust.
Hristo nodded with a smile to the truck driving off, as Numpha tried to brush the dust off his expensive suit. As they began walking again, Hristo returned to the man's question.
"Oh we clean the park for the people who will come the next day. The younger boys will paint the benches tonight and clean up rubbish. There is usually some larger things which the teenagers can carry to the truck to bring back with them. Simple Treasures." the man finished with a gleam in his eye. As they walked they came upon a building that could, theoretically, generously, be called a house. The main building looked like it may have been a medical clinic at one time, but it had been added to and adapted over the years, and now hosted a dozen or so children ranging from about five, to near adults roaming around, playing games, or working on sorting materials into piles of junk.
"This... is your... family?" the rich man asked astonished.
"Of Course!" Hristo exclaimed spreading his hands to the open area in front of him. "Just as with the scraps that other people do not want and I turn into a business. The children who have no place to go, come here. They are my family. They are my legacy." The man's pride was easily recognized in his voice.
More than any business, the children, the family were what completed Hristo. The rest, the rest was a means to an end.
I hope you enjoyed my little story of a day in the life of Hristo. And I hope I did not stray too far off the beaten path of the task.
As mentioned in the header of this post, I want to donate all of the liquit proceeds from this post. I put that note in the header in hopes that people who don't actually read posts but upvote on what they see on the main page might drop a vote here.
In the true effort of the #payitforward mantra of this task, I would like to commit 100% of the liquid reward netted from this post to the true hero here, @hristoatanasov​ in hopes of helping him to continue his good work for the lost and unwanted of his Country.
Thanks for reading! Please pay Hristo's blog a vist and give him some appreciation as well!!
