As I was driving along Blairs Ferry Road, eating my unneeded Freddy’s french fries and staying warm in my car, I came upon a homeless man who was begging for money and food. I gave him what I had in cash, and he exchanged a “God bless you.” The three dollars I gave him was nothing to me, but everything to him.

Continuing on my drive home, I thought about the times when I was skeptical and judgemental of homeless people. I remember in 7th grade, a friend of mine told me homeless people were all fakes who just wanted to steal your money and then go home to their family and perfectly fine house. My friend also told me the money that my mom and I gave them went straight to drugs and alcohol. I let what my friend was saying get in my head and looked at these struggling people in a negative light. I went through a phase of judging people who had less than I did. I became close-minded to the fact there are people just like me who need help. To me, they were just a ton of conmen taking people’s money.

Going through this phase was hard for me because I watched my mom give to people everyday. She regularly gave people begging  money, mittens, water, or crackers. I didn’t fully understand how they could take her money and advantage of her.

Looking back, I was so selfish because all I could think about was how the money she was giving the less fortunate could go to benefit my family’s needs. I later told my mom about what my friend was saying and how I felt about her giving away our money to people who we weren’t positive needed it. My mom looked at me and simply responded with, “Lauryn, if I gave to ten people and only one of them truly needed it, that’s enough of a reason for me to give.” Hearing this completely shifted how I looked at people who were begging. I slowly started to reach out and help others, whether they needed it or not. I loved seeing their faces and smiles. It made every doubt and skeptical thought vanish. Even today, I sometimes struggle with being able to tell if someone is being honest or just trying to take advantage of me, but I always resort back to what my mom told me, and try to live by her example.

Next time you’re driving and see someone who needs help, stop and remember that God gave you two hands for a reason; one to help yourself and one to help others.