It was as hot as fire. The sun was shining very brightly. I came from school exhausted; half of my uniform was soaked with sweat. My throat was dry and I couldn’t speak a word.

My water bottle was empty, so I rushed towards the dispenser and drank almost three glasses of chilled water. I felt better. I went upstairs to my room and threw my bag on the bed, turned on the AC for and pulled out the most comfortable clothes to wear.

I freshened myself and took a bag of chips from the cupboard and started munching. My stomach was crying for food, I pulled out more packets of chips and ate them all. I rested for a few minutes.

The doorbell rang, I rushed to open the door, I knew it was my mum, returning from her job. I took her permission to go out and buy ice cream as I loved eating it, especially on a hot sunny day. My mum allowed me to go.

I took some money from my wallet, grabbed my cycle and went off to the shop. On my way, I saw a poor man by the roadside. His appearance made me stop for a while. He had a jet-black beard, brownish eyes and was wearing dirty clothes, which were torn from various places. He was eating some leftover pieces of bread. When he saw me, he a wide smile appeared on his face.

His smile shocked me. My heart was torn apart with sadness. Without thinking, I parked my cycle and took out the money I had brought for ice cream and gave it to him. But … he didn’t accept that money!

Once again, he had surprised and shocked me. I asked him why he doesn’t want to accept money.

At this, he smiled again and said, “I am here to find some work. I don’t like to get money without putting any effort for it.”

His words made my eyes fill up with tears and I rushed back home.

Mum was in the kitchen. I ran towards her, calling out, “Mum, mum!”

Then I told her the whole story. I tried to convince her to help that guy, but she didn’t respond to it as I wanted her to. She asked me to get some rest.

Sadly, I went to my room and lay down. I was disheartened. The words of that guy kept echoing in my ears. The only thing I wanted to do was to help that guy, but I didn’t know how. I was tired, so without even realising it, I fell asleep.

Around 5pm, I woke with the doorbell ringing. I went downstairs. Dad was sitting on the sofa, exhausted. I sat beside him. It seemed that he wasn’t feeling well, so I asked him about his day. He replied it was just fine.

I looked out of the window and saw that our car was quite dirty. I mentioned it to daddy. He said that he was too tired to take it to a carwash. Just then an idea clicked in my mind. I told my dad about the man I had seen and how much I want to help him, so if he could hire that guy as a car washer in our house, that would help him earn some money for himself and his family. Luckily, dad agreed to it.

But would that man still be there? I took permission to go and see if the man was still there where I had seen him. I didn’t find him there but I didn’t lose hope and took a deep breath and started asking people if they had seen a bearded man with messy clothes. Everyone seemed unaware of such a man.

Just then, I saw him. He was walking at a distance, with his back towards me and was about to turn into a lane. I ran towards him and shouted so he could hear and stop. He stopped at the street’s corner. I went close to him and asked if he would work to earn money. He beamed with happiness. I asked him to follow me and led him to my home.

Now he is working at our house, cleaning our car and doing a great job of it. Everyone likes his easy nature and his work. He has been working in our house for six years. Recently, he opened a carwash shop with a lovely name “Blessing”. I am glad that due to a single step of mine, someone’s life transformed from miserable to happy. He is very happy with his wife and two little sweet sons.

Whoever you are, whatever your age is, your one tiny step can make someone’s life better. Don’t follow what others are doing. Be yourself, be brave and take tiny steps in your life and help someone by giving them a chance live with dignity. Don’t be rude to the poor, respect them and treat them humanely. They are also humans. If you are living a luxurious life, it is because you are blessed. Share this blessing with others, it will only increase your own blessing. Help others in any way you can. Even a small step can change someone’s life.

Published in Dawn, Young World, November 6th, 2021