Homeless Old Woman Spends All Her Money on a Treat for a Rich Boy – Story of the Day

A homeless lady spent all the money she had left on a chocolate bar for a little boy whose mother was too busy to buy him one and taught them a huge lesson.

Mrs. Barbara Wilcox spent most days begging outside the Eldridge Plaza, a small commercial building with a fancy superstore, a bakery, a gym, a spa, and a few fast food places in their town. It was fairly populated, and people often showed her kindness.

Some days were better than others, but she was mostly able to buy loaves of bread at the end of the day right before the market closed. She also liked to observe people, especially families. Many busy mothers attended the spa for treatments after dropping off their kids, but one day was different.

Mrs. Wilcox noticed one lady often at the Plaza. She went to the gym every morning and then the spa. Later, she would come out dressed like an executive woman, and it reminded Mrs. Wilcox of her past.

One day, the woman brought her kid with her. He was a little boy of no more than eight years old and didn’t look happy to be there with his mom. “Jimmy, come on. I have to get to the gym right now and hurry to get to work on time later,” the mother said.

“But, Mom!” the boy whined. “What am I going to do while you’re working out?”

“You’re going to sit there with your tablet and stay quiet until mommy’s done. Is that clear?” the mother said sternly.

“Can you at least buy me some candy? I’ve gotten good grades. You said you would buy me if I aced the math test, and I did,” the boy complained.

“I don’t have time right now. Please hurry inside,” the mother answered. She took the boy’s hand and rushed into the gym, ignoring Mrs. Wilcox completely. That was normal. Many people ignored her presence, and she couldn’t blame them.

She had done the same in her youth, never imagining how bleak her future would be. Now, she was mostly alone and had no help in her retirement.

But Mrs. Wilcox had a thought. Despite how little money she had collected over the last few days, she wanted to do something nice for the boy.

So, she went inside the supermarket. The guard at the door stared at her with a frown. He knew she was the homeless lady that spent her days outside. She had entered the store on other occasions but only ever bought some old-day bread because this chain was expensive.

The guard started following her discreetly, worried that she might steal something. This was not new to Mrs. Wilcox. People were often wary around her, especially at stores. They couldn’t kick her out without reason, but they certainly wanted to most of the time.

Mrs. Wilcox walked the aisles looking for a nice chocolate bar for that boy, Jimmy. She only wanted to cheer him up. When she reached the correct place, she saw a little girl looking at the chocolate and smiled at her.

The girl smiled back, but her mother soon turned around. “Hanna, come on,” the woman said to the girl with a worried look at Mrs. Wilcox. “You have enough chocolate at home. What did I tell you about staying away from strangers?”

They walked away, and Mrs. Wilcox grabbed the chocolate bar she wanted. She went to the register and got in line right behind a nice young man. “Excuse me, lady. The register on the next lane is empty. Why don’t you go there?” the man asked with a frown on his face.

Mrs. Wilcox smiled tentatively. “Oh, I’m sorry. My legs are not doing well. I came to the closest register I saw,” she answered. The man’s response wasn’t a surprise either. Other people often thought that Mrs. Wilcox would beg them to buy whatever she was getting when she got behind them.

But she would never do that. The man finished paying for his things and rushed away. The young girl at the register rang her chocolate bar and frowned. “Ma’am. This chocolate is pretty expensive. It’s five dollars a bar. There are several cheaper options right here, and you could save your money,” she said.

“No, this is the bar I want,” Mrs. Wilcox replied. The young girl rang her up, and she paid with the one-dollar coins she had collected. This chocolate was indeed expensive, and she would not be able to buy bread that day. But it was a worthy sacrifice in her mind.

She left the store and waited for the boy and his mother to finish. She saw her walking out first and the boy following behind her dejectedly. “Hey, boy. Here’s the chocolate bar you wanted,” Mrs. Wilcox said.

“Thank you so much!” the boy said and smiled. He took the chocolate bar and got into his car. Mrs. Wilcox saw that his mother noticed the chocolate bar, and they talked for a second. She looked shocked for a second and got out of the car.

They went to a café and emerged with a bag and a cup of hot chocolate. “Ma’am, thank you so much for buying my kid some chocolate. Here you go,” the woman said.

“Thank you. Hot chocolate is great in this weather!” Mrs. Wilcox replied gratefully. But the mother stayed there with a worried smile.

“If you don’t mind me asking, why did you buy my son that candy bar? It’s pretty expensive, especially at this market,” the woman asked.

“Well, I wanted to make someone happy today. He reminded me of my son who I haven’t talked to in a while. I was once a young busy woman like you, but I had no time for my family. Work always came first,” Mrs. Wilcox answered.

“Oh. But where’s your family now? Why are you in this situation?” the woman wondered.

“My son and daughter didn’t want anything to do with me because I never had time for them. They left home as soon as they became adults and disappeared from my life. Then my business went bankrupt. I lost everything paying off debts, and eventually, I lost my home,” Mrs. Wilcox revealed.

“But surely they would forgive you if they knew your situation,” the woman continued with tears in her eyes.

“I don’t think they know what happened at all. But I don’t deserve their forgiveness at all. I was an absent mother, and that will always be my biggest regret,” Mrs. Wilcox said.

The woman thanked her once more for her kindness and got in her car, where the boy was waiting. She hugged her son fiercely before turning the engine on. She never took her son for granted ever again.

What can we learn from this story?

1. Value your family while they are here. There’s nothing more important than family in this life. They should come first.
2. Learn from other’s experiences. Sometimes, you can only learn from your first-hand experience, but other people’s stories can teach you so much too.

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If you enjoyed this story, you might like this one about a woman who had to raise her sister’s baby on her own.

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