Grocery Store Owner Fires Clerk for Giving Food to Homeless, They Switch Places Months Later — Story of the Day

A grocery shop owner lashes out at his employee and fires him for feeding a homeless man. A few months later, he regrets his actions when karma teaches him a lesson the hard way.

"WHAT THE HECK IS WRONG WITH YOU?!?" IS THAT WHY I HIRED YOU?! FOR FEEDING A HOMELESS CREEP RIGHT HERE?!" Mr. Young yelled at Ronald when he spotted him feeding a homeless man.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Young, I was only..." Ronald trembled as he faced his enraged boss. He worked as a clerk for Mr. Philip Young's grocery store, and he had only been hired a few months ago. "I noticed he was hungry, Mr. Young, and..."

"No, no, no, that won't work here! You're my employee, and I pay you bloody well to do your job properly! If you have to do charity, do it at home! I don't want to scare the hell out of my customers here!" he yelled at the top of his lungs.

Suddenly, all the shoppers turned, their gaze fixed on Mr. Young and how he'd lashed out at Ronald. Mrs. Anderson, who knew Ronald well and was a regular client at the store, couldn't help but feel sorry for him. "Oh, dear... That young boy has gone through a lot. His parents abandoned him as a child in an orphanage, and now that he has a job and is finally making a life for himself, his boss is so short-tempered and stern."

"I apologize, Mr. Young," Ronald said quietly. "He appeared weak and was begging for food. I couldn't see him that way, you know. That will not happen again, I promise."

"Do you realize this isn't the first time I've warned you, you moron?" Mr. Young exploded. "And that's enough! You need to get a good lesson so that you give up that stupid charity of yours!"

"Please, Mr. Young... I swear this is the last time. Actually, I have a suggestion. We waste a tremendous amount of leftovers and expired products. I was just thinking that if we had a tiny container outside the store where we could deposit these packets a week before they went bad, it might help the homeless."

Mr. Young took a step forward and looked right into Ronald's eyes. "ENOUGH IS ENOUGH, RONALD! THIS AIN'T A PLACE TO DO CHARITY, GOT IT? SO GET LOST FROM HERE 'CAUSE YOU'RE FIRED!"

"Mr. Young!" cried Ronald. "Look, I understand I shouldn't have done that. I promise…"

"Did you not hear me? Get the hell out!" Mr. Young shouted at Ronald and shoved him out of the store. "This is a lesson for you to understand that you should worry for yourself first, then about others!"

Ronald attempted to get his job back, but it was pointless because all his begging with Mr. Young had gone unanswered. Mrs. Anderson felt sorry for the unfortunate youngster and wanted to help him, but she was aware of Mr. Young's stiffness. Nothing in the world could persuade him otherwise once he'd made up his mind, so she stood helpless as Ronald walked away.

However, someone among the customers that day had recorded the entire encounter on her phone, and she knew exactly how she could help Ronald deal with the ugly situation….

A few days later, when Ronald was on his way home after collecting his severance pay, he sensed someone was following him. He first assumed it was someone trying to steal his money because they might have seen him getting paid at the grocery shop, so he accelerated his steps, deciding to run if the footsteps got closer. Then a female voice interrupted him.

"Mr. Ronald Morse? Can we please talk? I can't walk as fast as you."

When Ronald turned around, he noticed a woman in her mid-thirties standing there with a notepad in her hand. "I must say, Mr. Morse, your pace is too fast for an average human being," she said as she reached him, panting fiercely.

"Who are you? And why are you following me?"

"Oh, my bad, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Jessica -- Jessica Lawson, and I'm a freelance journalist for The City Today," she said, extending her hand for a handshake.

"A journalist?! What do you want from me?" Ronald replied, baffled. "I guess you followed the wrong person."

"And I guess you don't read the newspaper, Mr. Morse," she said with a smile, holding up her phone to show him an article from the newspaper. "I wrote an article about you and what happened the day after you were fired. You won't believe it, but that piece had insanely high traffic on all of our social media platforms, and I'd like to interview you for the next story. Some people even came forward to help the homeless after getting inspired by your story. Unfortunately, I couldn't persuade your ex-boss for an interview. Can you please…"

"Woah, Woah, Woah, miss, I'm sorry, but I'm not interested. If you really want to help the homeless, just encourage people not to waste food and instead donate it to those in need," he remarked as he turned to leave. "And, please, don't run in those heels next time," he said, referring to her shoes. "You might end up hurting yourself," he added before walking away.

Four months later…

"So, Mr. Morse, how do you feel after having helped thousands of homeless in the city in just four months?" an interviewer asked Ronald. He was being interviewed in The City Today's headquarters while a screen displayed his entire journey over four months of helping the homeless.

"Help for the homeless and Ronald Morse," read the first slide. It was the title of Jessica's GoFundMe page, which she had set up three months ago after being moved by Ronald's generosity and dedication to helping the needy.

Fortunately, many individuals stepped forward to help Ronald, and a substantial sum was gathered, allowing him to start his own grocery store. And all of its credit went to Jessica who not only became a helping partner in Ronald's journey but also his life partner.

Ronald smiled warmly at the interviewer as he gave his answer. "It feels incredible to have helped so many people. To be honest, it would not have been a success without the support of my wife. So I'd like to thank her for that. Thank you so much, honey!"

"So, Mr. Morse, would you like to share how you executed this whole idea," the interviewer asked, pointing to the screen, which displayed a large image of Ronald's shop.

"It's very simple," Ronald explained. "All I did is was provide two containers in front of my grocery store. One of them was for the collection of any items customers would want to donate to the impoverished and homeless. I've even seen schoolchildren donate chocolates and small food packages which shows how kindness is being instilled in our children. As for the other container, it's primarily where the staff leaves leftovers for the homeless. We also intend to collaborate with other stores to make this concept more effective and to help more people."

"That's a brilliant idea, Mr. Morse. So moving onto the next question...." And the interview went on for almost two hours. When Ronald and Jessica left the studio, they decided to drop by a cafe to celebrate the special day.

However, as they proceeded to the entrance, their gaze was suddenly drawn to an old man sitting huddled up in a corner. "Homeless and hungry," the placard beside him read.

Ronald quickly went to the cafe and got a packet of croissants and a cup of coffee for the man and offered it to him. "Excuse me, sir. Please take this; it's cold, and you'll feel better."

As the man looked up to accept the coffee from his hands, Ronald froze in place. "Mr. Young?! Is that you?"

The man dropped the coffee, his hands trembling as he held Ronald's hand. "Ronald…you… I'm very sorry," he muttered as he burst into tears. "I should not have fired you. I'm sorry..."

"Mr. Young, please get up and come with me."

Ronald felt terrible for the old man and brought him inside the cafe. He got him food, and as Mr. Young ate, he realized he hadn't eaten in days, if not weeks. Later, when the older man finished eating, he revealed how he ended up homeless.

He told Ronald and Jessica that after the article about him kicking Ronald out of the store was published, he began losing customers at his store, which eventually closed down, and because of the public defamation and monetary losses, his kids – who were his only living relatives and well-settled – pushed him away and severed their ties with him. He couldn't find a job because nobody would hire him due to old age, and after his savings depleted, he became homeless.

Ronald felt sorry for the man despite how he'd treated him in the past, so he hired Mr. Young as a cashier at his store. One month later, when Mr. Young received his first paycheck, he bought a loaf of bread and milk and left it in one of the containers for the homeless.

"Ronald was right, and I was wrong. You should always help others in need rather than think selfishly about yourself," he thought as he walked away.

What can we learn from this story?

• Unnecessary arrogance won't lead you anywhere. Mr. Young fired Ronald for helping someone in need. Years later, karma caught up with him, and he regretted his actions.
• Kindness begets kindness. Ronald helped a homeless man in need, and in return, several people stepped in to help him via the GoFundMe page. Be like Ronald!

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