todayilived:

Today I won a photography contest that my city held. The grand prize was $1000 and a Nikon D80. It was surreal to me that my dreams of spending the money on equipment and editing software were finally a reality. As I left the bank with the cash in my wallet and my mind driving through the mental map engraved there that would take me to Best Buy, I noticed a man running down the street after another gentleman. After quick observations, I realized that the young man had just had his guitar stolen by the other guy and he was desperately trying to get it back - tears intensifying his frustration.

It was no use, however, as the man seemed to have some form of disability in his leg causing him to lag behind. It all happened so fast and by the time I realized what was happening, the thief had climbed into an unlicensed van which drove off. I watched the guy slump against the corner store wall and soon noticed a shopping cart full of dirty clothes, blankets, sheets of paper and other contents. It was obvious that he was a homeless man. I quickly phoned the police and then walked over to the guy. He sat with his head between his knees crying. I guess he heard me coming because his head snapped up. He was obviously quite distraught yet he smiled at me. His eyes were yellow and his teeth were chipped. I told him that the police would be on their way soon but it didn’t seem to matter to him. As if I were an old friend, he told me the importance of his guitar and how it was all he had left. He explained how the world had taken his job away, his wife who was a victim to breast cancer, his father who had disowned him yet he was convinced that the world would never be able to grasp away his love for music. Music was all he had left and it was all he clung to. It was odd to see a man who had just lost his guitar glowing the way he was but I listened as he spoke about days spent playing acoustic melodies to soothe his dying wife. He raved about the nights he’d spend jamming with his neighbors.

Anyway, I ended up taking him out for dinner and then gave him the rest of my prize money so that he could go out and buy a guitar from the pawn shop. I’m not telling you this for fame or recognition. I’m telling you this because I think our generation is aching for a change but we don’t know how to start. We aren’t sure what steps to take or how to bring our ideas to life. Be humble and grateful. Don’t ignore the poor and don’t look past the weak. We might not be able to change countries, cities, towns, families but we do have the power and potential to impact one person. We all have the strength to if we’d only stop wasting time on planning ways to change our world. Just do it. Look for the need, reach out, and impact. It’s that simple. Stop living for yourself.