“This is such a cool story. About a month ago, I posted a photo of Ricky and Doris. At that time, all I knew was that Ricky was a puppeteer, and he had become good friends with Doris while performing in the park. He loved her so much that he honored her by creating her own puppet. (Top photo). I always assumed that Doris was a woman of very few words. Because every time I tried to speak with her, she smiled, and nodded, but never spoke back. Ready for the kicker?

I ran into Doris a few nights ago in Washington Square Park. And she spoke to me! Clear as day. In fact, she had quite a lot to say. Turns out, she had just gotten out of surgery to fix her vocal cords. For a full year, she had been unable to speak, because a shoulder injury had…