When reality hits you

Jacket Zara / Scarf H&M / Fedora hat Top Shop

Here I am. With my rather expensive outfit. New hat, that was oh so important for me to get. Gotta look fashionable, right? A new winter coat in the softest wool and mohair blend keeping me warm on the very cold New York autumn days. Make-up is carefully put on. An everyday look, yet with a little je ne sais quoi.

And then there I am in the subway, on my way to some more shopping around Columbus Circle and a nice cup of coffee with a good friend, when a homeless man enter the subway car. He starts walking through the overcrowded car saying “God bless you all, please, can you help me”. He comes closer. Business as usual I ignore him. There are so many homeless people here in New York, and you simply cannot give money, or food, or coffee to them all. And after getting used to that, I sort of got okay with walking past them (although it never feels good). But this man I really felt bad about not helping. I was trying to find my wallet in my bag with too much unnecessary stuff, and by the time a found it he was gone. It felt horrible. He was wearing a tee, dirty as hell, his sneakers were almost sole-less, and here I am in my fashionable outfit, thinking that that’s so important. To look chic. While some people are just trying to fill out the most basic need. Food. I soooo wanted to run after him. Why I didn’t, I don’t know. What I did do though, was gathering a whole bunch of old clothes to drop off at the donating box. And while dropping it off I promised myself that the day I can, I will withdraw $100 and make the day for a homeless person. And now, I can only hope that the homeless man will get a coat for the winter.