Food for Thought

There was this man on the street. He was wandering about aimlessly, as if he didn't really have anywhere else to go. He appeared to be dirty and unkempt. He stopped ahead of me, and turned around. He stepped back, as if to allow me pass him, and gave me a warm smile as I walked by. Just before I passed, he said, "Good day, ma'am." I thought to myself, 'He sounded almost chipper. What for?'

Today was a day, not so unlike many others, in which I was a bit irritated. Things didn't go quite as well as they could have. I was running late, my hair didn't turn out just how I liked it, my daughter was fighting me to get up, traffic was horrendous, etc. You name it, it went wrong.

I find that often times, when things don't go my way in the morning, my day is off to a bad start. I am irritated at the slightest discrepancy in my schedule or plans. What's that about? Control? Am I really THAT anal?

Here I am, a strong woman with dreams and goals, a great job, a beautiful daughter, many wonderful people in my life, including lovely friends and awesome family. I have a car, a warm place to rest my head at night, and everything I really need.

Why is it that a man who has what appears to be nothing can be so much more thoughtful and kind than someone with everything they could ever need?