We All Have A Story

--by hiloecho, posted Mar 31, 2007

Last weekend I volunteered at our local shelter to serve meals to the hungry. I convinced a classmate of mine, a woman who is older like myself to come along for the experience. Her life consists of school, playing golf as a semi-pro, and generally living a very comfortable and protected lifestyle.

I assume everyone has seen the hungry, the needy, the homeless, the less fortuanate in our society but the assortment of folks at the shelter seemed to trouble my friend. She was aprehensive about getting physically too close when she was serving meals and she was also full of questions. She made observations such as, "They look like they do drugs", "I assume a lot of them have alcohol problems", "Some of them seem like they are retarded."

Once everyone is fed, staff/volunteer's can also eat from the leftovers. We were told there was enough and that we should grab a plate. "Sure," I said without hesitation. But my friend whispered to me that she didn't want to eat there and would prefer to go to a nearby cafe for breakfast. I told her I was going to stay and eat and I hoped she would reconsider her decision too. She stayed.

As we were eating, I decided to share my story with her -- how in 2000, I became homeless due to circumstances beyond my control, how since 2000 I have been a recovering drug addict among other little life tidbits. She was shocked! You see, I have a 4.0 gpa, I am tops ijn our class, and appearance wise you would never guess I have a past .... what I wanted to convey to her was that we all have a story and we should never judge another for any reason.

We are here to help each other and being homeless does not make you any less of a person and we should take the time to learn others stories before we make an assumption. My hope is that she will continue to volunteer, time permitting.

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Posted by hiloecho
Mar 31, 2007
Comments (24)

Readers Comments

jaydeebug wrote: Circumstances beyond our control chooses our situations in life and you don't walk away without learning some valuable lessons. Good for you for sharing yours with your friend!

mommakat wrote: Very nice story. We can't judge others by the way they look. There's always more behind our facade. You just never know. It proves you should really get to know someone before passing judgment on them. We need more people to help those less fortunate without being judgmental.

Joan wrote: It's part of human nature to judge and it takes alot of courage to tell people about your past, to pick yourself up, and to go back and help others in the same situation. Good job and i'm proud of you!

Aurelia wrote: God Bless you for being so kind and for helping your friend understand the importance of compassion. We should never take for granted what we have and shouldn't be greedy. I'm glad you are ok now and things are good for you. ~Aurelia

carey442 wrote: The receivers of our kindness appreciate our gestures, but it's okay that it makes us as the doer feel good, too. I had an unexpected half-day off work last Christmas season, so I took my 1/2 day off with pay, and I went to volunteer at the local rape and abuse crisis shelter. If people stopped to think about how much they take and gave back TWICE as much, this world would be such a better place.

onekindact wrote: Thanks for sharing this story. Not only are you amazingly BRAVE, your kindness shines through in each word. It's a great reminder to never judge a book by it's cover.
God Bless You!
Matthew

DONALD PETER wrote: If the world could get some two more people like you,it would be a better place for the less fortunate
Thanks for such a loving and touching story and may God bless you so Much

Sinkanyisiwe wrote: This is a lovely story.What a wonderful job you are doing.I hope God will continue to give you the strength and the power you need.You deserve a crown.Thanx for inspiring us.

elissa wrote: Odd that i read this today, it's been 4 years that my dad died at 59 and when we found him, he too was a homeless man. I have and will always have a place in my heart for the less fortunate, my Dad, God Bless him died smiling and with a twinkle in his eye......so much more to this story but i just want to thank everyone for sharing. It's good to know there are still good souls around me.

iggygee wrote: Tahnksgiving of '04 we discussed going to the shelter and volunteering for thanksgiving'05 and then celebrating with our own families the day after thanksgiving. It was a great idea and everyone was physched about it. It never panned out, as My husband and I got into a serious car accident in Sept of '05 and I still am not up to the volunteering, I am hoping in one of the upcoming years to be able to do it, I think it would be nice. Anyways hats off to you, I think you did a wonderful thing, and I am glad your friend had a chance to look at things from another direction..

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