Be a good one.

There is a gentleman who stands on the corner of 16th and Market Streets each weekday morning and evening during rush hour. He wears a driver's cap, a long coat and scarf and always has a suitcase sitting by his side. He stands in the very same spot with a resolute and confident way about him. He preaches about his love for Jesus loud and proud, day after day. I pass him twice daily. He is always there.

Most people act as if he doesn't exist. I never make eye contact, but I listen. I stare straight ahead, but my ears are paying keen attention. I've become accustomed to the sound of his growly booming voice, just as I have the the squeaky brakes of the city buses and the clink-clank of the street vendors spatulas on their grills.

Sometimes he reads straight from the bible, other times he sings songs that he seems to be creating on the spot. Sometimes he seems angry, and other times he's very calm. Either way, his message is the same: be damned if you don't accept God as your savior. Be damned if you fornicate, drink alcohol, adulterate, or whatever else. His words condemn and ostracize, but otherwise, he seems a nice enough man. I've seen women and men stop to say a prayer with him or just to say hi. His reply is always, "have a blessed day." Once the men in the giant garbage truck honked and waved.

I used to seethe a bit when I passed him, offended how he thinks his way is the only way. I wrote him off as crazy, but I still couldn't (and still cannot) ever help but stretch my ears as I pass.

Then the New Year came. In typical self-actualizing fashion, I openly adopted my 2011 motto, the Abe Lincoln quote: "Whatever you are, be a good one."

And then it hit me.

I sure don't like or agree with what the crazy man on the corner says, but he does it with passion and persistence. He does it well. Rain, sleet or snow, he wakes up early each morning and returns each night, to share what he believes to be the path to an enlightened life. And even though his words are often harsh, I've seen him respectfully ignore the people who scoff as they walk by. He's completely unfettered by the fact that 99 percent of passersby completely ignore him, and, I assume, inspired by that one percent he manages to reach.

If just half the people in the world believed in something as ardently as he does, (something good, that is) then the world might be a happier place. If I can take the things I believe in and share them with nearly as much gusto as he does, then I can feel pretty good about my time here.