A Small Kindness
It was a dark, gloomy morning on the walk to school. The entire city was overshadowed by clouds that were heavy with moisture but stubbornly wouldn’t release the rain.
I shivered underneath my coat as a cold breeze blew by and tasted the crisp air.
​
My two friends and classmates, Quinn and Anna, and I had left early to hang out at the cafe before school started.
As we continued to walk, talking about something of no importance, I stepped on something that made a rustling sound. I stopped, looked down, and noticed a wet dollar bill on the ground.
​
“Hey, guys. Look what I found,” I said as I picked it up. On closer inspection, I realized it wasn’t a typical dollar bill and my friends realized it too.
​
“Oh, no way, a $100 bill!” Quinn exclaimed excitedly, “Nice find, dude!”
​
“Way to go. What are you going to do with it?” Anna inquired. I turned to them already with an idea in mind.
“Well, we still got half an hour left before the first bell rings. We could use it to buy something good at the cafe.”
“Oh, we could buy the new special dessert they’re selling. It’s a limited offer and I think it’s ending after today,” Quinn said.
“Well, let’s go then. Time’s a-wastin’,” Anna quipped as she ran ahead. Us guys hurried after her as fast as we could.
After a few minutes of running, we were in front of the cafe.
Before we could go in, I noticed out of the corner of my eye a small figure sitting on a bench. I could tell it was a man by the scruffy beard, but I also noticed that he was wearing dirty, torn winter clothing and had a forlorn-looking dog sleeping at his feet.
“Hey, buddy, what’s the matter?” Anna asked, noticing I wasn’t following them. She and Quinn turned to follow my gaze and noticed the homeless man on the bench. She frowned slightly in sympathy.
“That poor man…” she mused sadly. She then turned to me and Quinn and added, “We should do something to help him.”
“What, why?” Quinn asked. “We don’t know the guy. It shouldn’t be any of our business.”
“He’s still a person. We can afford to help him in some way,” she continued firmly. A light bulb suddenly seemed to light up above her head. “We could use the money to help him.”
“What?! You want to waste the $100 we found on a guy we don’t even know?” Quinn protested as he shook his head in disapproval. “He might not even put the money to good use. You know lots of homeless people use money to buy drugs.”
“Quinn, do you remember anything I’ve told you?” Anna said rebukingly, “It’s easy to turn a blind eye to someone who needs help, but it’s better to do something for a person less fortunate than you than nothing at all.”
“Anna, no offense, but I think you need to preach that to a new audience,” Quinn yawned as he turned to me. “Come on, man, let’s just go buy the special. We only have a few minutes.”
I suddenly felt like I was placed in the middle of a crossroads as both of my friends looked at me expectantly as if my choice determined what would happen next.
On the one hand, Quinn had a point: we had no idea who the guy was and what had happened for him to end up on the streets. There was no way to know if he would put the money to good use if we gave it to him.
On the other hand, Anna wasn’t wrong: we could afford to sacrifice something to help him and he seemed to be having a hard enough time taking care of himself and his pet. All in all, isn’t it the right thing to do?
“Come on, let’s stop arguing and just get the specials already. There’s no reason to keep on fighting.”
“See, he agrees with me,” Quinn pointed out, “Come on, just forget about it, and let’s just enjoy our early dessert.”
Anna pursed her lips and looked at both of us with disappointment in her eyes. I agreed with her, but I hoped to change that in a few minutes.
​
After buying the pastries, we stepped outside and turned towards school. Quinn immediately bit into his snack and I was about to follow suit when I noticed the homeless guy and his dog again.
Remembering Anna’s words, I felt a twinge of guilt and eyed my pastry.
Then I looked back at the man.
Then I looked back at the pastry.
Finally, I rested my eyes on the man.
Without thinking, I strode over to the man. The man looked up when he noticed standing above him.
Without saying a word, I held out my pastry. The man looked in surprise, but then smiled slightly and took it.
“Thank you.”
It was only two words for a reward, but I still felt a sudden warmth in my heart. I heard munching below me and looked down. The dog was also eating a pastry and for a second I was confused as to where it came from, but when I turned, I noticed Anna had relinquished her own as well.
“You know, somehow I knew you were going to do that,” Anna said with a cheerful smile.
​
“But those pastries were for you guys, not him,” Quinn complained as he wiped the cream off his mouth.
“What’s done is done, there’s nothing more to do,” I remarked, shrugging my shoulders. “Now, come on. We’re gonna be late for school if we don’t hurry.”
​
As we started a brisk jog, I looked behind to see the man with a small smile as he waved at me. I did a quick wave back before resuming my run. I blinked when a ray of sunshine hit my eyes.