As soon as I opened the door to exit my town's local Bagel Shop, this hopeless yet humble man politely asked me if I could spare him a dollar. Without hesitation, I pulled out my small, lime-green, boom-box patterned wallet and I began to sift through it, in order to find this man a single dollar bill.
I don't know why, but something told me that I should give this man something.
So there I was, digging through my wallet on the sidewalk in the drizzling rain. My fingers passed through all of my ID's, gift certificates, rewards and business cards, more health and car insurance cards and some loose change to find this man a single dollar bill. It only took a matter of seconds for me to realize that I only had a single $5 bill left on me.
After I told him this, I then asked the man if he wanted me to buy him some lunch or something warm. He timidly refused my offer.
"Well then it looks like I'm just going to have to give you my five." I said.
His face contorted into a look of confusion, as if he did not hear correctly or clearly what I was saying. He wagged his finger at me, almost to scold me that these random acts of kindness such as this aren't supposed to happen. To him, they didn't even seem possible.
The man then said to me, "Oh NO, NO, NO! I can't do that. I can't take five dollars from you."
However, I still insisted that he accepts it; that he by no means was taking it from me. I was GIVING it to him.
This man could not believe it. He looked at me in pure awe, as if I was some sort of magician. I could tell that another part of him wanted to unravel some sort of hidden and evil ulterior motive (which I clearly did not have). Pausing, to try and find the loophole that part of all of this included some kind of deceit, which he had no evidence of. But I'm sure my offer appeared to him as a mere illusion. As much as he wanted to warp his perception of me and categorize me into the majority of people who have ignored him in the past or screwed him over, he had trusted me.
He looked deep into my eyes with sincerity and paused when I held the five dollar bill in front of him. He was so hesitant and wary to take the five dollar bill, as if it were some kind of forbidden fruit.
I was so taken back when he suggested that I go into the Bagel Shop, break it, and then come back outside. I told him to not be silly when HE even offered to go into the Bagel Shop himself and break the five into singles so that I could keep four and he could keep just one. It was such a beautiful moment of selflessness. From the moment I met this man, I sensed that his aura he was not a selfish one...maybe in the past he was, but now, here at that moment in time, he wasn't, and so I rewarded him.
I didn't ask this man his story nor what he needed the dollar for, but I guess that's what the beauty of all of this was. All he had with him was a destroyed backpack that appeared to be full of heartache, baggage, struggle, stress and worry. He wore a dark navy beanie on his head to keep himself warm and a heavy jacket on this cold rainy day. I never got his name, just the fact that he wanted to get to Kingston.
When I put the five dollars in his hand his eyes began to well up in tears. His old, sullen and hopeless eyes suddenly regained life and hope. He began crying tears of joy, as if I had given him the secret to life. He wrapped his arms around me to hug me and I accepted his embrace; accepted him, for I feel that this man for many years had faced a lot of rejection. This man was certainly hurt badly in the past, kicked in the balls by life's lottery, and no matter what or how it happened I refused to judge him for it.
We said our goodbyes. I wished him luck with his journey and told him to please take care. I reassured and promised him that everything is going to be okay. But these are only words. As I was walking back to my car, he blessed me not once, but about three more times. Although these were just words, it still meant a lot.
For this world to get better, it is necessary to put our words into actions. To instill and inspire hope and good one must do good. I believe that the humble should be rewarded. I believe that those who have, should give. And that those who give will make the world be a better place.
We are all capable of giving something to someone. There are many ways to make a difference.
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