CHICAGO - Midwest winters can be harsh, unforgiving. The kind that make your bones quiver while creating fog-like vapors in your breath.
It was no different here in Chicago last February 24, 2015. Early that day the sun peeked with glorious rays of sunshine, but when night fell, the temperature sank to a brutal 27 degrees Fahrenheit. To put that in perspective, your household refrigerator's ideal average temperature is 35 degrees.
In a piece for The Orlando Sentinel, Brian Schmitz told the tale of a homeless man, draped in a blue blanket to protect himself from the elements, laying in a street corner on that fiercely cold Tuesday night.
The homeless man was "shivering," narrates Shcmitz.
But in a megalopolis such as Chicago where work is hard and living is expensive, there are bigger worries than the cheerless plight of a destitute. So the hurried citizens just passed by, ignoring the poor fellow like an emptied, discarded soda can.
No one cared. Nobody, until an extra large dude - 6-foot-9 long and 255 pounds thick - actually stopped by to talk, see how he was doing.
The generous gentle giant turned out to be Bismack Biyombo.
Then a member of the Charlotte Hornets, he was in town for his team's joust with the Bulls the following day. He fled the cozy confines of his luxury hotel room looking for a cellphone charger.
Growing up poor in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Biyombo had walked in the shoes of the stranger he just met, which was probably why he was spontaneously overcome with the feelings of empathy and sympathy.
Biz, as he is fondly called, offered to take his newfound friend to dinner, which didn't exactly go on smoothly.
Mall security officers asked Biyombo if the unkempt man dressed in several layers of disheveled jackets was really with him. "Then when we got to the restaurant, the guy who was supposed to sit us down said we can come in but there was no free food and we would have to pay," Biyombo recalled.
Unbeknownst to the skeptical server, Biyombo has more money than South Sudan and that he actually had the wherewithal to buy the restaurant if he chose to.
IN THE COURSE of his NBA career, Biz, the seventh overall pick in the 2011 draft has already banked $49.7 million in salaries. And he will collect $34 million more through 2020 when his contract expires, according to basketballreference.com.
At the dinner table, Biyombo didn't immediately tell his guest that he was an NBA player. The who wasn't important. They were just two happy chums enjoying a meal together, kindred spirits bonded by the shared struggles life destined upon them.
After a "long conversation," Biyombo found out an illness that led to a coma, a testy divorce, and the inability to collect his pension were some of the reasons why the homeless man was down on his luck.
Biyombo helped. And while he wouldn't go into detail, one of the whispers heard around the small NBA community was that he put a nice chunk of cash in the man's pocket and paid for him to stay in a warm hotel room. For a month.
The homeless man hasn't been heard since. Hopefully, the random act of kindness got him back on his feet.
As for Biyombo, he is reluctantly in the spotlight again. After a two-season stint with the Orlando Magic, he was traded back to the Hornets last July 7. He is currently in Johannesburg, South Africa to play in the 2018 NBA Africa Game this August 4, an event that honors the legacy of Nelson Mandela among other noble pursuits.
Though he may not be an All-Star, Biyombo is in the First Team when causes need to be advanced and charities require funding.
After all these years, it warms the heart to know that Biz Biyombo, now 25, is still full of bull.
Likable. Affable. Approachable.
And, definitely, lovable, too.
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