When Casey Fischer decided to stop at a Dunkin Donuts before going to class one morning, she didn’t know that something was about to happen that would change her outlook on life. She noticed a homeless man outside picking up change on the sidewalk and followed him in.
In line, she started talking to the man, named Chris, and noticed he was trying to count out enough change to buy himself something to eat.
She bought him a bagel and some coffee and asked if he would sit with her, so they could eat together. They spent some time talking together before Casey had to leave to get to class.
During their conversation, Casey came to understand how Chris became homeless and how much he was struggling to survive. She hoped that her small but kind gesture made things a little easier for him, at least that day, but she didn’t realize how much her kindness had affected him.
Before Casey left, Chris took out a pen and scribbled something down.
He handed it to her as she walked away. It wasn’t until later that she read the note. She instantly broke down. Just by talking to this man and buying him a small meal, she had saved his life.
She posted her story online saying,
“today I went to Dunkin and saw a clearly homeless guy singing on the side of the road and picking up change. Eventually I saw him stroll into Dunkin, as he was counting his change to buy something I began to get super annoying and talk to him over and over again even when he didn’t really want to talk. Since he had maybe $1 in change I bought him a coffee and bagel and asked him to sit down with me. He told me a lot about how people are usually very mean to him because he’s homeless, how drugs turned him into the person he hated, he lost his mom to cancer, he never knew his dad and he just wants to be someone his mom would be proud of (along with another hours worth of conversation.)
“this lovely mans name was Chris and Chris was one of the most honest & sincere people I’ve ever met. After realizing I really need to get back to class Chris asked me to wait so he can write something down for me. Handing me a crumpled up receipt he apologizes for having shaky hand writing, smiled, and left. I opened his note and this was it.
“‘I wanted to kill myself today because of u I now do not. Thank u, beautiful person.’”
There are a lot of homeless people spread out all over the country.
Many people don’t think twice about see them on the street, and very few people offer to help or take time out of their day to talk to them. They struggle with many of the same things as other people. They are cold, hungry, lonely, and even sick or depressed.
If you knew that spending a couple bucks and a few minutes would save someone’s life, would you be more willing to help those in need?
Not everyone gets to see the direct effect of their kindness like Casey, but that doesn’t mean that it isn’t appreciated. Hopefully, her story will motivate more people to help the homeless and just lend a listening to ear to someone who looks like they need a friend.
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today I went to Dunkin and saw a clearly homeless guy singing on the side of the road and picking up change. Eventually…
Posted by Casey Fischer onWednesday, May 20, 2015
