Chicago, the “windy city” and “city of big shoulders” has a tough reputation and perhaps that’s what makes a wintertime act of kindness all the more amazing. It happened on Chicago’s subway system, also known as the “El.”
Most of the passengers that bitterly cold winter day were commuters hurrying to get home and curl up under a blanket. Jessica Bell, a Chicago family law attorney noticed an older, weather-beaten homeless man. For footwear, he just had a pair of battered old gym shoes; even if they hadn’t been riddled with holes, they still weren’t adequate for a Chicago winter. The homeless man took the shoes off to check his feet — he was afraid they were frostbitten. Whether or not that was the problem, it was alarming to see that blood was soaking through his socks.
This is when another passenger on the train, Maurice Anderson, did something incredible: he took the boots off his own feet and gave them to the homeless man. As Maurice recalled, “He was bleeding through his socks, so my gut said, ‘take them off and give them to the guy.’ I asked him what size shoe he wears and he said 12. I wear 12, as well. He was overjoyed. I gave him more joy than anything to give them to him.” Maurice had only owned the boots for three weeks!
Jessica took some photos on her phone and later posted them on social media. “I usually don’t post things publicly, but this was the type of post I wanted people to see. It was just so selfless, it was so quiet, it was so humble, was what really touched me about what Maurice did.” She heard from people all over the world and hopes that her message of kindness will spread and that others will be inspired by what Maurice did.
Check out the video and let us know what you thought about this act of selflessness in the comment section below. Don’t forget to like and share!
