Feeding the Homeless

Hawaii has a homeless problem. You can spot tent camps or grocery carts filled with belongings just about anywhere you drive. In the past, it’s never really bothered me and I haven’t thought twice about it. It’s just something that unfortunately happens to some people.

Earlier this week, as I was driving home from dropping Adri off at school off-post, I came to stop at a red light where there’s usually a homeless person sitting. More often than not, it looks like some surfer hippie kid who needs money for weed.

This time though, it was this guy. He had these dark sad eyes. His sign said, “Big Boy Hungry Please help God Bless.” I don’t carry cash and I didn’t have any food in the car, so I cried all the way home.

Determined to make a small difference in someone’s life I picked up a few extra drinks and bags of Cheetos at my weekly trip to the commissary. The more I thought about it, the more I felt like I had to do something to help these people who otherwise have nothing.

I literally only spent a few extra dollars to pick up bottles of Gatorade and those bags of chips that they have near the checkout lanes. It took me all of two minutes to slap together a peanut butter sandwich, then slice it into triangles, because I love triangle sandwiches. I also grabbed a few bananas that were sitting in the fruit bowl; the ones with the marks on them from the pressure of the bowl that no one in this house would eat anyway.

As I drove home from dropping Adri off at school, I hoped that there would be a homeless person sitting at the light. Terrible, I know. As I approached the light, I saw a skinny dirty guy sitting there. It wasn’t Big Boy, but he had those same dark sad eyes. I grabbed the bag sitting in the passenger seat and rolled down the window. “Excuse me.” He looked up and I held out the bag of food. He looked confused for a second, but got up and took it. As I handed it over, I told him to have a great day.

Driving off, I could see the man walking away with his backpack and sign. My hope is that he found a nice shady place to sit and enjoy his meal.

Not only did helping this man make his day (I hope), but it made mine as well! It’s amazing how good it feels to help others. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to post this or not, because I don’t want any recognition. I would simply like for this post to serve as inspiration to others to go out and do something nice for someone in their community.