If ever there was a lesson in karma, this is it and it really does go to show - "what goes around comes around."
I was reading a touching story the other day that was a refreshing reminder, there are still good people out there. It was also a reminder that we can never, or rather we shouldn't, judge a book by it's cover no matter how tattered and torn it may be.
The story (and this is a very condensed version) obviously unfolded in a larger center. A homeless and disheveled looking, old man sat alone on a street corner. Nicely dressed and appearing well-to-do, a woman approached him with a big smile. She asked the man if he was hungry. Accustomed to being ridiculed and usually overlooked, his reply was cold and on the sarcastic side. Why would someone like this woman want to talk to the likes of him after all? His reply didn't deter her. When she couldn't get the man up from his seated position herself, she enlisted the help of a police officer who was passing by. "See that cafeteria over there," she said. "I'm going to get him something to eat and get him out of the cold for awhile." Inspite of his protests, the homeless man went with the woman and the officer.
Inside the cafe, the trio was greeted by an unhappy looking manager who said the there was no place in his cafe for someone who looked like the homeless man. It was then the woman identified herself as a wealthy CEO. She pointed out the fact her company spends boat loads of money for corporate events at the cafe. The manager quickly changed his tune.
The woman then proceeded to take a seat beside the homeless man. She asked him if her remembered her. He had a vague recollection but couldn't say from where he had seen her. Years back, she herself was on the streets. Cold and hungry she wandered into the very same cafe. She asked the man behind the counter if she could work for food. He handed her a coffee and pointed her to a seat in the corner (where they were seated now) and told her to hang tight he would bring her a meal. He paid for it himself. The man behind the counter was the homeless man. "I will never forget what you did for me that day," said the woman. That day she found a job and turned her life around. Now it was her chance to do the same for him. Not only did the homeless man get a meal that day, but he was given the opportunity to work and even to have a warm roof over his head.
Now this is how people SHOULD behave. It truly warms the heart and should serve as a lesson to all of us. You just never know what life has in store.
