Unforgettable experience of mine

Recently, I was having dinner with my didi and jiju at a local restaurant on a bitterly cold evening. As we left the restaurant we came upon an elderly homeless man who was asking another couple for loose change. I heard the woman say to her partner, "Don't give him anything. He will just spend it on drugs or alcohol." As the couple ducked their heads and scurried away, the homeless man turned his attention to us.

While I was thinking about the best way to help this man, jiju suddenly pulled up a car next to him, he rolled down the window, and he took a packet that looked like a wrapped sandwich and placed in the man's hands along with a pair of his gloves and scarf that he had been wearing. With a surprised look on his face, the old man thanked both didi and jiju. He tucked the sandwich away in the pocket of his tattered coat, then he put on the gloves and wrapped the scarf around his neck and ears.

I must tell you that I was very humbled by all of this. I consider myself a giving person and someone who goes out of her way to be helpful to others, but that night, while I was deciding the best course of action,didi and jiju stepped in and actually did something practical and helpful.

I then looked into my bag, pulled out some money and handed it to the elderly man, who thanked me several times. Afterwards I saw him go into the corner market and come out with a bag. He walked over to a homeless woman in a nearby doorway of a shop and gave her the bag. Inside was a container of formula, which she poured into a bottle, and began to feed to a baby she had tucked underneath many layers of coats and blankets. The man took off the scarf and added it to the protective bundle surrounding the infant. And for the second time in one night, I felt humbled.

This experience really reinforced for me the importance of listening to my heart and being willing to just do something, no matter how small, when I see a need. We always have the choice to do something when we see the need, and we shouldn't underestimate what we can do. The things we do give -- a sandwich, a scarf, money or even just a friendly smile at the right time, may be more important than we will ever know.