After work today I had to run an errand. I was waiting at a light and there were a lot of cars so I had to wait twice. Ahead on the corner was a young man with a sign that said he was a homeless vet. I don't know about a lot of you but here we see this all the time. In certain parts of town people fight over the "good corners". There is always a face eagerly awaiting a hand out.
Sometimes I feel in my heart that I should help and if I have some change I will give it to them. I can't imagine being so alone in the world that I have no one to turn to, no one to call for help if I should need it. I am so lucky.
There was something about this man on the corner. He was about 5'9 and very thin. He was wearing shorts that were filthy and a shirt that was torn. He had a ratty backpack that I can only imagine carried his every possession. His hair was filthy and his skin red from the sun and brown from sitting on the ground. He wore sandals on his feet that looked as though they might fall apart at any minute.
When I got through the first light and pulled up near him, I thought "Well I have three dollars. I can give him one and use the other 2 to get my diet coke. That way I won't have to use my debit card". I rolled down my window and called him over. I handed him the dollar and for a brief second we made eye contact. His eyes were watery from the sun.
He very quietly thanked me and told me to have a nice day. Then he went and gently put the dollar in his back pack. I noticed then how he winced when he moved and imagined that a sunburn caused by the desert sun and standing out in the 106 degree heat with no shade must hurt so badly.
I remembered that I had my pool bag and grabbed the sunscreen bottle I had along with the other 2 dollars and called him back over. I gave him the money and the sunscreen. He looked at me with his watery eyes and tears spilled down his face. He smiled at me and said thank you again. My light turned green but I was so busy staring at this man thanking me and crying. The woman behind me beeped so I said good luck to him and drove off.
Since then I haven't been able to stop thinking about him. I know that people will comment or post and say things like "he's probably not even homeless much less a vet!" or "He's just going to buy smokes or alcohol with that ya know. Don't waste your money". And maybe those people are right. Maybe all of that is the case. But maybe...just maybe...he's a homeless vet. Who fought for our country and came back here to nothing. And now I know he has three dollars and some sunscreen. And he cried when I gave it to him. And I was worried about having to pay for a diet coke with my debit card.
In my heart I know that he wasn't just looking for a hand out. He wasn't just fighting for the best spot to get some cigs or a drink. In my heart I knew that this man had struggled and was alone and had no where to go. And now I'm the one who's crying.
Shannon, I agree. There are those that will leave negative comments but we each need to do what we feel is right at any given moment. I'm sure the homeless piece is more pressing where you are than it is here in the suburbs but I see my fair share in my travels for my job. I try to keep the little soaps, shampoos... from our hotel visits in my car along with granola bars, bags of pretzels... to give to someone when the situation seems right. I try not to give money, just in case it is for smokes or booze. Good for you if the situation seemed right to you and for possibly making a difference - you just never know.
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