# Humility Author: Paynalton Canonical source: Language: en Original publication: You wouldn't believe how much you can learn if you forget that stupid habit of judging people by their appearance.

This morning a dirty, disheveled, smelly homeless man got on the bus, carrying only a broken backpack and a stick as a cane. He started asking for money, but no one gave him anything, and he ended up sitting next to me, with his face between his hands, sobbing **"Everything ends, everything ends"**.

I remembered I had some cookies I hadn't eaten, so I took out the bag, offered them to him, and said **"Hope is the only thing that never ends"**. He looked surprised and returned the cookies saying he had already eaten, then he started talking about his life.

The man had been a ranch hand in his youth and was in charge of taking care of fighting roosters **"I know everything about roosters"** he repeated over and over. **"Green feet are the best, when you go to a cockfight, bet on the ones with green feet"**.

Suddenly he asked **"Are you really listening or are you just giving me the airplane"**. I told him I was listening and that there were few people in the world who knew so much about roosters, that if he wrote down everything he knew he could sell it and make some money.

Then he talked more about roosters, about how he had raised them since they were chicks, how he had killed rats to keep them from eating them, and how proud he felt that his roosters were all over the world winning fights.

At the end he thanked me and wished me luck before getting off the bus.

I have few superstitions, and one of them is that if someone who has been mistreated by fate wishes you luck, you will have luck.