Some gestures show that not everything is lost in the world and that we can still have faith in humanity, even if that humanity comes precisely from the people who have the least, or who simply have nothing. At this stage I find it hard to be moved or surprised, and I have to admit that this simple act managed to do both. And I’m not the only one.
The people behind the Model Pranksters channel were making one of their videos. This time the idea was to get two homeless men to compete in an arm-wrestling match. They were told the winner would take $100 and the loser would leave with nothing.
However, they planned (as the host says to the camera) to give the loser $50 as well, so he wouldn’t leave empty-handed, especially after dangling the chance of a reasonable sum of money so close to him.
They picked the first homeless man, who didn’t think twice about taking part, because if he won he could buy himself some new trousers. Then they picked the second.
One of the men won the match and was given the $100. And just before the organiser could surprise the loser with the $50, the winner turned to the other man and told him there was no harm done and no hard feelings, that he knew it was tough, and that you have to feed the needy, not the greedy. And he gave him half the prize ($50).
The organiser’s face was a picture of total surprise, because he knew these men probably hadn’t seen $100 in one go for a long time, and yet the winner was willing to share that juicy prize.
That gesture led the organiser to give each of them another $50.
Although some viewers have accused the channel’s creators of exploiting people in need to make viral videos, this time it was worth it to witness such an incredibly inspiring gesture. You can watch the video below.
Watch: Model Pranksters’ arm-wrestling video on YouTube
Featured image: The.Comedian, CC BY 2.0, via Flickr.
