You are driving down the road and the light ahead turns yellow. You slow your car and as you reach the light, you see a man with torn greasy pants and a dirt tinged face. He holds a sign that reads "Homeless veteran. Please help." The light turns red, leaving your car even with the man. Now you are faced with a choice. Do you dig in your bags and hand him the few crumpled dollars you find? Do you look straight forward and pretend he doesn't exist because it is far too awkward to look into his sunken eyes and not give him anything? Do you look him in the face and scuff at the fact that he could probably find a job but instead he is here begging for the penny's you have worked so hard for? Or Does your heart hurt because you want to help but you just can't afford to spare even a cent?
One choice certainly doesn't make you a far greater person than the other. But the choice you make could make the person in need far greater than they use to be. Granted, sometimes people aren't always honest and may not actually need the money or maybe they might spend it on something you may not approve of. Those are legitimate concerns; however, all you can do is present them with an opportunity that they might not have had before and pray that they do some good with it. Whether they do or not is not your battle to fight. It is their life path and not yours to decide. But on the smallest chance that you could be the one to make a difference in their life, should you help them?
Yes. Yes, you should.
Even if they might use the money for drugs and alcohol instead of food or a home, you should still help them out.Don't get me wrong, I don't want my money going towards that any more than the next person. Yet you can't decide which people are going to spend it on what you want and which aren't. It isn't about the money you give. It is about showing them that somebody cares enough about them to help them out, a little hope can go a long way. You can give them money, food, old clothes, or even one of those small care packages to help them out.
Even if you don't have the money to give, you should help them. As a broke college student, when I say I'm on a strict budget that usually means I can't buy the cute shirt I wanted or go get food with my roommates, whereas to some people that may mean they are sleeping in the car or going without food so their children can eat for the week. Your broke is someone else's rich and that is important to remember. If you have a roof over your head, a paying job, and food on your table you are luckier than most.
Although it may not seem like you are making a difference in that homeless person's life, you more than likely are. You don't know their circumstances nor their story. They could have been a war veteran who protected your freedom, an old musician your granddad use to listen to, a father, a mother, a person just like me and you who was dealt different cards. Who knows, someday you might need some help yourself. So next time you are stopped at a red light with a person in grease covered jeans and a dirt tinged face, holding a sign asking for some help at your window – remember what you have and how much your kindness and compassion can make a difference.