Kindness of Strangers

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Have you ever had a random encounter or fleeting moment
with a stranger that stuck with you?

I was walking down the street in Tampa. On this day I was homeless, pregnant and hungry. It’s hard for me to imagine how I looked to other people. I was seriously out of my comfort zone in every way.
I spent $1 on a chicken sandwich. It was the best spent dollar. However, I was worried that someone was going to steal my sandwich. Or that someone would hassle me for wearing an OSU sweatshirt. I forgot that I was in Florida when I got dressed.
So there I was scared, pregnant, wearing the wrong sweatshirt. . . a hot mess. This man walked up to me. I didn’t know what he was going to do. He did not do or say what I expected.
He asked me if I was hungry. I told him I was fine. He gave me $10 for food. I didn’t have to do anything in return. I don’t remember the rest of the conversation. However, I remember that he was kind and that was becoming a rare thing in my life.
Since then whenever I have the chance, I donate food to local charities. I paid off my library fines one year with a canned food donation.
There are those who complain about welfare moms haven’t seen it from the other side. Most people don’t want a handout but they don’t want to starve or for their kids to starve. Sometimes they have to ask for help because they are desperate. I wish there was a better system for not starving. There probably is but we don’t do it here because everything is backwards and ridiculous.
Desperation is not attractive. Hot messes are not so attractive either.

Link to another post about kindness:
Random Acts of Kindness