Passing it on...

I am a big believer in Karma, and social responsibility. I think the two go hand-in-hand. Something good happens to you, you pass on the goodness to someone else who needs it.


I was fortunate enough to double my income in the last week. This allows me to be self-sufficient on my own income, regardless of what my husband brings in. This ability to know that I can care for my own children and provide for them independantly makes me very proud of myself, and has been an accomplishment, for someone who has been largely dependant on his former job in the military and the benefits they provided. It also covers them with health insurance from DAY 1.


Today, a young woman (20 years old) approached my husband and I while we were sitting and relaxing. She was bussed out here from Tennessee to sell cleaning product door to door. Apparently it is part of a youth program to take kids from the projects and teach them sales skills, so that they can make an income to support themselves, rather than to rely on welfare. This particular young lady had been a prostitute, had a baby, and then the baby died from a heart disorder. She had a great personality, was quick-witted and will likely go far in life because of her ability to interact with people. In fact, she will be starting trade school in January to become an LPN back in Tennessee.


The cleaner she was selling was $40 a bottle. I had no interest in the product, but I had an interest in this young woman, boldly telling her story of hardship, one that is so different from the childhood I had growing up in suburban America. She decided with the death of her child, she would not continue her life on the streets, and wanted to be able to afford a better way of life for herself and the children she will one day have.




Whether or not her story was true, I bought in to her dreams of making an income, in one of the most difficult ways possible, selling door to door household cleaner, and sharing her life's struggles and lessons learned at such a young age. I bought a bottle of her cleaner because she is good at what she does and successfully sold me.




She also shared with us, an experience she had earlier today, where a man called the police because he was sick of "her kind" meaning black, coming door to door.




I can't afford to adopt a wayward teen, nor do I have the time to contribute as much as I would like to helping people, but this situation brought an opportunity for me to do something for someone else, in a small way, but no less a success for her.




$40 was not in my budget to spend today. But it's $40 well-spent on something that will allow her to eat for one more day and pay for a night at the hostel she is living in.




Sometimes, we all need to know we can go on for one more day.