“All right ladies and gentlemen, who wants to work the cups and napkins station?” I scanned the room full of strangers before I hesitantly lift my hand into the air. Since no one seemed willing to do the job I thought I should take on this easy, clean, and safe task. The volunteer coordinator said all I had to do was hand every client a cup and a napkin. How hard could that be, right?

That day I was volunteering at St. Vincent de Paul with my mother’s work. When I woke up that morning I was in no mood to volunteer. I did not want to get out of bed and face the cold, wet weather; however, I did because I had made a promise to my mom. I felt as stiff as a board from my restless sleep. Before I go volunteering at a homeless shelter a nervous feeling sets in because I never know who I am going to encounter.

As soon as I was escorted to my station, I was suited up in an apron and gloves. The table had already been saturated with napkins and cups for me to pass out. I stood there quietly for about ten minutes while picking at my latex gloves. I was waiting for people to start arriving. Finally, the doors opened. People of all kinds flooded in and eventually made their way toward me.

There were so many people and the line was never ending. Most of the clients were congenial and showed their brightest smiles when I provided them with a napkin and cup. People were coming one after another so I had no time to rest. I had to distribute those napkins and cups so fast that I felt like a machine in a factory assembly line. I hardly had time to make conversation with anyone. When the line started to dwindle, a lonely man walking in caught my eye. This man stuck out to me because of the jacket he was wearing on his back. He was wearing a purple letterman jacket that had my high school’s name stitched on it. This sight caught me by surprise.

I did a double take and saw this man had to be in his early twenties. I wanted to ask him if he attended that school but instead I avoided eye contact and let him walk on by. It wasn’t until his second time through the line that I final worked up the courage to ask. He responded with an impersonal nod and was on his way. This encounter seemed to hit me close to home. For the rest of the day I caught myself wondering what went wrong in his life for him to end up where he is today because I felt sad for him.

Seeing that man made me think about the choices I am making in life and if they will be beneficial to my future. It showed me that unfortunate things can happen to anyone and his situation might not be his fault. I wondered if the choices he made in high school were the right ones or if they were choices that helped him end up in the plight he is in now. This scared me because maybe he was a kid just like me or one of my friends when he was in high school. His presence at that shelter taught me to work hard at everything I do so I will not have any regrets. It taught me to encourage the people in my life to work hard to achieve their goals as well.

I realized that bad things could happen to the best of us. But deep down seeing that man motivated me to strive for better things in life so that one day I will be representing my high school somewhere incredible and important; not while eating in a homeless shelter. I started to feel bad for not wanting to volunteer that day because if I wouldn’t have then I wouldn’t have encountered that man. I learned to value and be grateful for everyone and everything in my life.