{"id":8097,"date":"2013-11-05T02:15:01","date_gmt":"2013-11-05T07:15:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/verastic.com\/?p=8097"},"modified":"2013-11-04T22:40:47","modified_gmt":"2013-11-05T03:40:47","slug":"classmate-now-beggar-street","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/personal\/classmate-now-beggar-street.html","title":{"rendered":"My Classmate Is Now A Beggar On The Street"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Money\"<\/a>Sometime last week, I was driving on Philadelphia Road and just as I was about to make a right turn into the shopping center (where Walmart is), I recognized the walk of someone that I used to know. I did not see his face, but as soon as I saw him walking, I concluded that it had to be my former classmate from high school. As far as I can remember, the last time I saw him was sometime during our 12th grade. I don’t even remember if he graduated.<\/p>\n

I honestly don’t remember his name, but for the sake of this post, let’s call him Darius. Darius and I went to the same high school – Parkville High School, Baltimore, MD – and we even rode the same school bus because we lived streets apart from each other. I never had much communication with him, apart from a casual hello<\/em> here and there, mostly because I was very, very shy of boys in high school. \u00a0He used to be friends with Steve, the guy that my friend, Solachi used to have a massive crush on. I literally stalked Steve on the hallways, just because of Solachi. She always wanted to know where he was, what he was doing, and what he was wearing. But he always wore the same thing: Navy blue hooded sweatshirt and blue jeans.<\/p>\n

Darius was disabled. I don’t know what happened to his legs, but he always walked like someone who was in a semi squatting position and walking at the same time. That was why I recognized his walk that day in front of Walmart. When I drove past him – his back was facing me – I went to the ATM to get some money that I needed, so I decided to get some money for him, too.<\/p>\n

I drove back to where he was, double-parked my car and had a conversation with him. He did not remember at first from where he knew me, but my face looked familiar to him (he said). It was the strangest thing for me, as the hairs on my neck were literally standing high.<\/p>\n

I’m used to seeing beggars on the streets, but I am not used to seeing my classmates on the street. We talked. He was very, very pleasant. He laughed, told me several times that I was still pretty and that I should stay pretty. I did not have the courage to ask him what happened. I wanted so badly to ask, what happened, where did it go wrong, how long have you been here, and is there anything else I can do to help? But I did not ask. I didn’t know how to ask.<\/p>\n

I gave him the money and we chatted some more. We couldn’t talk long because I was literally double-parked on the road, and there were now a fleet of cars lined up behind me. No one honked for me to get out of their way, but I knew I was being rude by blocking them, and I appreciated their patience. There is no way I would double-park my car in Nigeria (and block other motorists) without someone honking at me, calling me a buffoon, and possibly coming to my hand-bang my trunk (boot) and order me to get out of the way because the road is not my father’s palour. But it didn’t happen that day with Darius.<\/p>\n

It really, really bothered me. I couldn’t stop wondering what happened along the way. And I thanked God that I was able to help him, even if it was just to have dinner that night. When things like this happen, I am reminded again just how blessed I am. Usually, when I see beggars on the street (in America), I wonder how an American-born citizen ended up on the street, while I, a Nigerian citizen got to be in a car and give him money. I feel an obligation to help anyone that I can.<\/p>\n

Maybe I’m being over dramatic about Darius being on the street, but for me, it is something completely new. I have never, ever seen someone I know on the street. And he was so struck pleasant! There he was, standing on the street, holding up a cardboard placard begging for money [in the cold], and he still had the strength to laugh with me and have a conversation with me? What’s my excuse then?<\/p>\n

Life can be so cruel.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Sometime last week, I was driving on Philadelphia Road and just as I was about to make a right turn into the shopping center (where Walmart is), I recognized the walk of someone that I used to know. I did not see his face, but as soon as I saw him walking, I concluded thatRead More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":7065,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"twitter_14738191_14738191":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[561],"tags":[62,927],"class_list":["post-8097","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-personal","tag-money","tag-philantropy","entry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nMy Classmate Is Now A Beggar On The Street - Verastic<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/personal\/classmate-now-beggar-street.html\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Vera Ezimora\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/personal\/classmate-now-beggar-street.html\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/personal\/classmate-now-beggar-street.html\",\"name\":\"My Classmate Is Now A Beggar On The Street - Verastic\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/personal\/classmate-now-beggar-street.html#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/personal\/classmate-now-beggar-street.html#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/06\/Money.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2013-11-05T07:15:01+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/#\/schema\/person\/2c1b7969fbea03a45b97d54a5228cc1a\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/personal\/classmate-now-beggar-street.html#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/personal\/classmate-now-beggar-street.html\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/personal\/classmate-now-beggar-street.html#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/06\/Money.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/06\/Money.jpg\",\"width\":1536,\"height\":1024},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/personal\/classmate-now-beggar-street.html#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"My Classmate Is Now A Beggar On The Street\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/\",\"name\":\"Verastic\",\"description\":\"Recklessly authentic.\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/#\/schema\/person\/2c1b7969fbea03a45b97d54a5228cc1a\",\"name\":\"Vera Ezimora\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f6c1e19c23a08351aab97f35d3ca650f0b87e7e96937f85baf0faf6e0834bc51?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f6c1e19c23a08351aab97f35d3ca650f0b87e7e96937f85baf0faf6e0834bc51?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Vera Ezimora\"},\"description\":\"I mean, I'm a lot of things - a Writer, Blogger, Speaker, Vlogger, Content Creator, Storyteller, Truth-Sayer, Milk-Lover, Yogurt-Addict, Entrepreneur, Daughter, Wife, Mom, & Nwa Jesu. Nigerian girl with Russian roots and future mommy of confusingly identical twin boys.\",\"sameAs\":[\"http:\/\/verastic.com\",\"http:\/\/facebook.com\/verastic\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/verastic\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/author\/vera\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"My Classmate Is Now A Beggar On The Street - Verastic","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/personal\/classmate-now-beggar-street.html","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Vera Ezimora","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/personal\/classmate-now-beggar-street.html","url":"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/personal\/classmate-now-beggar-street.html","name":"My Classmate Is Now A Beggar On The Street - Verastic","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/personal\/classmate-now-beggar-street.html#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/personal\/classmate-now-beggar-street.html#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/06\/Money.jpg","datePublished":"2013-11-05T07:15:01+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/#\/schema\/person\/2c1b7969fbea03a45b97d54a5228cc1a"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/personal\/classmate-now-beggar-street.html#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/personal\/classmate-now-beggar-street.html"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/personal\/classmate-now-beggar-street.html#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/06\/Money.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/06\/Money.jpg","width":1536,"height":1024},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/personal\/classmate-now-beggar-street.html#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"My Classmate Is Now A Beggar On The Street"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/#website","url":"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/","name":"Verastic","description":"Recklessly authentic.","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/#\/schema\/person\/2c1b7969fbea03a45b97d54a5228cc1a","name":"Vera Ezimora","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f6c1e19c23a08351aab97f35d3ca650f0b87e7e96937f85baf0faf6e0834bc51?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f6c1e19c23a08351aab97f35d3ca650f0b87e7e96937f85baf0faf6e0834bc51?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Vera Ezimora"},"description":"I mean, I'm a lot of things - a Writer, Blogger, Speaker, Vlogger, Content Creator, Storyteller, Truth-Sayer, Milk-Lover, Yogurt-Addict, Entrepreneur, Daughter, Wife, Mom, & Nwa Jesu. Nigerian girl with Russian roots and future mommy of confusingly identical twin boys.","sameAs":["http:\/\/verastic.com","http:\/\/facebook.com\/verastic","https:\/\/x.com\/verastic"],"url":"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/author\/vera"}]}},"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/06\/Money.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2Mdf8-26B","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8097","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8097"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8097\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8099,"href":"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8097\/revisions\/8099"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7065"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8097"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8097"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/verastic.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8097"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}