change somebody's life (for the better)

Yesterday I spent 2 hours speaking with two boys, who were between 20 and 30, and who were homeless, and a girl, who is 22. She was homeless but now she lives in an association which helps young people.

We talked all together in the street, and they were really kind and funny. I had some cliches about homeless people, that I imagined always drunk, sometimes violent, and so on, but they were really nice and actually, if I had not seen that they were begging for money, I wouldn’t have guessed that they were homeless. They were clean, they were not drunk, they were intelligent, they knew what was in the newspapers. Just people like you and me.

It was so sad to imagine them, on the evening, whereas I was already in my bed. I gave my phone number to the girl, Emilie. She is looking for a job to take care of old people, but she has no internet access and she doesn’t know where she can find that job. I told her I would look for the adresses and print it for her and I did it today evening. I am by my parent’s, now, so I won’t see her and the other two guys during 10 days, but I’m gonna phone her and give her an appointment to give her the adresses. I really want to help her.

Usually I only say hello to homeless people, sometimes I give them some food or some money, but now I wanna give time. I’m gonna think about it after my exam, perhaps to get involved in an association. First, I’m going to help Emilie : to give the adress, and to help her writing the letters in a proper french.

I know I do this because I feel guilty of having such a material life – and not being happy with it-, but aynyway, I think it is important.

My friends just got engaged recently and I was asked to be a bridesmaid in their upcoming wedding.

Two years ago, without the intentions of hooking two friends up or changing their lives for the better, I happened to do just that. My friend Nicole told me that sometimes she thinks that if it hadn’t been for me, they never would’ve ended up together which is too much credit on my part, but flattering nonetheless.

The real reward though is not on me for bettering their lives, but for my friends who’ve found the person they want to spend the rest of their lives with, and I couldn’t be happier for them.

This is more a principal or moral than a goal because changing peoples lived for the better must be a way of life – something you strive to do everyday. Like for example – healthy eating. I feel like I have done this before and would love to continue doing it.

Hauki told me that I changed her life for the better. I can assure you that she has also changed my life in many ways and surely for the better. I can barely wait to see what the future brings for us two. :)

My mother lives with my father, who does not really care for her. She cannot drive, and we live in countryside, so she spends her days waiting, sit at the table and watching TV.
I am not there during the week because I study far away, and I have my own flat, but when I call her on the telephone, she is always depressed. She feels lonely and bored.
I don’t know what to do for her, really. I am as nice as I can and I try to talk with her each time I go back home but she is often alone and falls in despair.
Her life and her hapiness really matter to me but I have no idea of how I can help her. Anyway, this is my goal : to make my mother be happy. It will probably take years but I really want to.

than I’ll come back to it

well, this has been up on my goals for quite a while now, and I feel like within the past few months I have changed peoples’ lives in different ways for the better…whatever ways those are. I hope this continues always but for now I am putting it as “done”

(depending on your views about people incarcerated). I have been writing to a person serving a life sentence in America for over a year. Just being a friend to someone who previously had none (no family, or ‘outside’ friends as he’s been there a long time), has changed his life for the better as I am constantly being told by him. An unexpected benefit is that my life has also been enriched as a result of this friendship. Very rewarding.

I’m going to belatedly declare this down for the work I did in Mexico and further for being my friends pillar of support right now, I know I have changed his life for the better, he even told me so.

but honestly right now I can’t think of anything. Besides, I’ve been told by several people that I’ve improved their lives by either setting a good example, giving advice, or just being there. So while it’s a little anticlimactic…I’m done. :)