When a teenager restores your faith in humanity.

I am on Facebook.  And one of my favorite connections are to the local, on-line, garage sale pages on there.  Our community has three, and I monitor them all the time lately as we just moved into a new house a week and a half ago, and trying to fill the space with much needed furniture.  Well, right before the move, I was trying to figure out how to get some extra help to pack the moving trucks we were renting.  A man in his early twenties posted on one of these pages that he was looking for odd jobs to make some extra money.  Perfect!  I contacted him, told him we were also going to be hiring some of the local day laborers in the area, and he could work alongside them.  

After much back and forth, he told me that for the amount I was willing to pay him, there was no way he could possible ensure my furniture would be safe.  First of all, would not or could not?  Second of all, the furniture was fine with the pads I provided and my working alongside a neighbor, brother-in-law, AND mother-in-law who jumped in to help- WITHOUT pay, and the workers we hired worked tirelessly!  We paid them the same amount of money an hour I make, after paying taxes.  So, I was really ticked that this man, although in his early 20's, felt entitled to more.  

Yesterday, as I was looking over a huge mountain of tree limbs that were taking up half my driveway from the trimming our good friends came to help Geoff with on Saturday.  Then, a high school-aged young man posts on one of those Facebook pages that he is looking for odd jobs.  I messaged him, he responded immediately, and arranged to come over after school today.  He showed up early, was prepared, and when he looked a little nervous about the job in front of him, I asked if he wanted to think about it.  He said, "No, it's a job."  And that was it.  He went to work.  

Two hours later he was finished, and he had the $50 in hand that I offered him for the job.  I asked him about his need.  He said he had to pay back debt to his family since they helped him to buy the truck he was driving.  I loved it.  I was so tickled by this young man that I posted on all three of the local Facebook pages how I would highly recommend this young man for odd jobs.  And the response was overwhelming!  I have a feeling that he will be too busy for me to hire him in the future, but felt great to have had him serve us for the short two hours.  Maybe my recommendation will serve him ten-fold from the little job I offered him.