Los Angeles Times columnist Sandy Banks published a beautiful story this morning, about a homeless man she knew well.  Eddie Dotson had been living on L.A.’s streets for many years by the time Banks met him.  He was polite to everyone and helpful to others.  He built a lovely and comfortable dwelling out of scraps and others’ throw-aways; he would rebuilt it without complaint when the street cleaning crews destroyed it (as they did every few months).  Banks remembers his patience and tenderness.

Banks wrote about him in 2009, which is the first that Dotson’s family in Austin, Texas, had heard about him in years.  They came out to L.A. and brought him home.  He died last week, so Banks wrote a moving essay about him and about how much he taught her.  Read it on Page A2 of this morning’s Times.

I want to praise Banks for her large heart and her clear prose.  I also want to praise the Times for hiring columnists — she is one of several — who show us that homeless people are human beings.