The kid who almost made me cry

Saturday, 8:40pm.

I was outside Dexter's Bakeshop waiting for someone to open the locked gate.

While waiting, a little kid on a bike arrived. He was a scavenger, and the side car of his bike had black bags that were filled with odds and ends that he could sell. From my estimate, the kid looked like he was less than 10 years old. He was scrawny, had a harelip, was shirtless and wore a pair of shorts that looked like it belonged to his Dad.

Carefully, he started opening the big, black trash bags which were left outside by Dexter's. One by one, he sifted through the trash and started setting aside things that he could sell. Plastic bottles, soda cans, discarded boxes - he was bringing to life the adage "one man's trash is another man's treasure."

He glanced at me once and proceeded to collect more trash from the big, black bags. That's when I had the opportunity to strike a small conversation with him.

ME: Kumain ka na ba?
HIM: Hindi pa po.
ME: Late na, ha. Bakit hindi ka pa kumakain?
HIM: Mamaya na lang po, tatapusin ko muna ito. Para makadami din ho.

At that point, tears were welling in my eyes. Part of me admired his hard work and the fact that he'd forego dinner just to gather as much trash to sell. Part of me felt sad because it's almost 9pm and he hasn't eaten dinner yet. Then I thought, when was his last meal? Was he able to eat lunch?

Suddenly, I saw the lady who was about to unlock the gate so I could go in. Before she arrived, I instinctively took my wallet and handed over some money to him. He look surprised and a bit baffled, and I told him:

ME:  Pagkatapos niyan, kain ka muna, ha.
HIM: (eyes wide and with a smile) Salamat po, Kuya.

Then, I left to meet Ate Bullet, and the kid continued to gather as much useful trash as he could.

While walking away, my mind was racing, asking myself if there's anything more I could do for this kid. If only Dexter's was still open, or if there was a nearby restaurant, I would've bought him dinner myself. I'm sure he was hungry after pushing his bike and going from store to store, opening each trash bag and looking for something of value.

But I wasn't able to. And I'm just hoping that the money I gave him was enough for him to buy a good, warm dinner.

It's the least a hardworking kid like that deserves.