Andrew

After I came back from traveling, I found it even easier to approach strangers and take time out do things I would have considered ridiculous. But it's been good for me.

This morning, at around 8 am, I was outside the apartment taking Madden (the dog I am dog-sitting) out to empty his bladder. After he peed, we walked around for a bit and were about to head in when a young man approached us. He was wearing plain black vans, black pants, and an inside-out solid black tee. He came to me and did not try to elaborate too much or win me over. All he said was, "Hey brotha, I lost my job at P.F. Chang's a while ago and I was wondering if you could spare a few bucks so I could get something to eat at Del Taco." I had Madden with me and did not have my wallet, so I told him I would be back in a bit and take him to eat. I took Madden in, fed him, put him in his crate for a nap, then grabbed my wallet and went down.

The man (still waiting outside) introduced himself as Andrew, and he began to tell me his story. I know people in need often butter up their stories, but this guy was real with me. He did have a hard time, and he was unfortunate, but he had the right attitude and didn't try to push his limits in getting something out of me. When we got to Del Taco, he even refused to get anything more than three of the cheapest tacos on the menu! He only spent $1.77 despite my efforts to buy him more, and as I listened to his story, I was again reminded how amazing people can be. Andrew had gotten his car stolen, lost his girlfriend to another man, gotten fired from his job, been evicted from his apartment, and lived on the street for a while. He used to have a stable life but it had crumbled and now he had nothing, but he wasn't giving up. He was not on the street begging but, the way I saw it, he kept his dignity and was working to work his life up from scratch all over again, even if he did have to ask for a little help. He told me, "I refuse to give up. I had a lot back then and I have nothing now but I'm praying hard and things will get better." What a trooper.

Coming back from traveling, I've seen and learned a lot. Back at home, the next step in growing has been applying my lessons to real life but it's really hard to apply every little thing right away. Meeting Andrew has been a great reminder for me (while I've been in the States) that lives do not adhere to the same pattern. One person's life can be so different from another, but because we choose to associate ourselves with like-minded people in similar environments, we tend to forget this. Just because we feel secure and always have what we need doesn't mean our lives couldn't have been any other way. We are so lucky, but it's so damn hard to feel blessed when we've been comfortable all our lives. We all have so much that everything has come to mean so little. Andrew cried and hugged me when I gave him twenty dollars (he asked for 5 so he could get deodorant and a t-shirt). How many of us can appreciate 20 measly dollars that much?