To be frank, throughout this video I was waiting for these two teenagers to suddenly douse this poor man with gasoline and light a match. It ended up being a sweet, wholesome gesture, by two very lovely young men – but what can I say, after so many years of mass media entertainment, I couldn’t help expecting them to turn out to be monsters.
I learned an important lesson. If you see a couple of teenagers being sweet and decent, expect them to be just that, sweet and decent.
But then I started thinking what would come next for this homeless fellow. Second night in his hotel room is over, now what? Will there be a job for him, laying tile or rugs, as he said he can do, or will he back at his street corner, asking for handouts?
The exterior makeover should last him about a week, but all the reasons that made him homeless in the first place—social, economic, political, psychological—they didn’t go away.
I hope no one steals his Adidas backpack.