To the homeless person standing in the rain.. I don't know your name, I haven't bothered to ask. It doesn't mean that I don't care though. I see you quite often, standing on the corner and holding a sign. I notice you nodding as I make eye contact. I don't mean to stare, but I want to see you. I don't judge you, but I do wonder about your story. I wonder what is happening in your life right now, I wonder where you go, what you eat, and how you survived the winter. I gave you a couple dollars once and after thanking me you said "God bless you." I don't really believe in god, but if I did I would much rather he blessed you. As I'm sure you know, you're not the only homeless person that I see regularly throughout my work week, and I watch each of you anytime I'm driving by. I examine you, because I know that it will make me empathize with you. The suffering on your face, the shame in your eyes, I can almost feel it. It awakens within me a deep sorrow.. I want to help you, but I don't know where to begin. My pocket change won't get you off the streets. I work really long hours to get by, and even if I gave away everything that I own there would still be more people out there, suffering in poverty. Just thinking about the small luxuries that I have makes me realize how insanely wealthy I am in comparison to those that truly have nothing. The thought has consumed the core of my beliefs.. I'm hell bent on working my ass off for the rest of my life, doing everything I can to ethically build wealth so that I can truly make a difference in the lives of those that are most in need.. I see that all people are born with certain needs that must be met, or their quality of life suffers. It doesn't help to distinguish between a child in Africa who is suffering and a child in the U.S. who is suffering. They are both doing whatever it takes to survive, and their actions have consequences on the people around them. When larger masses of people suffer inequality, it leads to larger consequences like war and discrimination. The suffering of any person always bleeds into the rest of society. No matter how much money I give away, I can't help you all alone, even if I were to become very wealthy it wouldn't be enough to set us all free. I need help to do more. I don't know if there will ever be enough for everybody to have a fair share, but I sure as hell think it's worth striving towards.. Life is so fucking beautiful. I don't believe in an afterlife, and while there may or may not be such a thing, I'm quite certain that being born into suffering, and dying without ever experiencing freedom is an atrocity that cannot be ignored. I've decided to devote my life to inspiring others to help me help you, because I'm not sure that god is ever going to. Thanks for reading guys.. Just something that I've had on my mind for a bit. It's a mouthful, so I'm never sure where to begin, thus I don't get to tell many people.. Sent from my iPhone using Grasscity Forum
That was beautiful. Well said. I think the same way, sometimes it's easier for me to suppress those thoughts tho because it's frustrating tht they're suffering and I can't do anything. Shouldn't be so damn difficult for any government in the western world to give these people a home, electricity and clean water. Just build apartments and let ppl stay there so they can gather energy and start working again. They can't improve their lives if they're forced to beg for money, but they can't survive if they don't panhandle. It's an evil circle. Sent from my mahogany fly hands lunch box