Exile on Main Street Here in New York, we often see people who are down on their luck. Should we or shouldn’t we “brake for them”? Living in New York is a challenge. The people are unpredictable and so is the city. A lot of days while I am commuting on the MTA I see people who are down on their luck, and so I try to make their day easier. There are people that accidently spill something on themselves, broke something of theirs, got robbed, got fired, lost something and other emotional, mental, or physical actions happen to them. People may ask for something like a cell phone to use, money, food and most people ignore them. What people should realize is they shouldn’t make their day worse if they see there already having a bad day and they should give the commuters some space. In New York and especially while commuting it is very hard to keep to yourself. I have been taught by my parents to not ignore a person who is down on their luck, but to help them so that’s what I do, and that’s what everyone should do. I learned this so I can be an example for people to follow and so I can pass this act of kindness to future generations. “Exile on Main Street” which is a story located in Utah is an example of someone that’s down on his luck. Garrison Keillor is the author that wrote a book. His book became popular and the more his book became popular, the more he gained a higher social status. Since he was rich and high class, he got treated better than someone who was poor. He got more respect and people catered to his needs. Garrison Keillor then went to his friends ski home in Utah. (When he decided to go inside the Jacuzzi). The Jacuzzi’s outside and he accidently got locked out of his friend’s home. He eventually realized after many hours passed that he had to go find help and when he did it wasn’t very pleasant. It was extremely cold and he was almost naked knocking on people’s doors for help except after the fifth try. She wasn’t helpful and only agreed to call his friends house but not invite him in from the cold outside as he was shivering. This showed me that whether you are a famous writer or a garbage man you will get treated the same from someone who doesn’t know you. However when they find out your social status that can either make treatment better or worse. A story that relates to “Exile on Main Street” and that I personally went through was a time when a homeless guy was asking for money. One day after school while I was walking down the street a gentleman who was homeless was asking for money so that he may eat. I witnessed dozens of people pass him and ignore him as he was kindly asking for money so that he may eat. I then went to a restaurant and brought him food. I went to the homeless guy to give him the food and when I did he thanked me. I felt very good at that moment because I knew I had helped a person who needed it as he was dealing with a rough time. Most people say that they don’t give homeless people money because they’re most likely going to use it for drugs or alcohol. This is a bad stereotype because that is assuming that all homeless people are on the street because they took drugs or are alcoholics. I wanted to prove this assumption wrong by purchasing the homeless gentleman accepted it very gratefully. I felt a great deal of responsibility for the gentleman that moment because if I were in that position I would want someone to help me out. This relates to Keillor’s story because people wouldn’t answer the door or refused to help. If Keillor died from freezing to death, who would have taken responsibility for that. I believe people should have a sense of responsibility to help someone else who needs it. I strongly believe that people should start realizing that we live in a very stressful, and hectic environment, which is New York City. Whether you are commuting, or just walking down the street, if you see someone in need of help or you see someone having a bad day you should not ignore it. You should help people and perhaps make their day better than how it began. If you help them you can avoid many problems and can also help people deal with their daily lives easier. I was taught to help people and assist people who are down on their luck so they may have a more enjoyable day. I learned this because I was in Boy Scouts for 10 years. This skill was necessary to improve relations and to make the environment a better, and safer one. Mr. Keillors story is not very common from my experience but the way people ignored him when he needed help is common. I hope that people start changing the way they treat other people after reading the article, “Exile on Main Street”. I learned that someone’s luck can change very quickly and this can happen to anyone of us can. If we end up in that kind of position, wouldn’t you want to be helped? I enjoy making my fellow New Yorkers lives easier and making them feel good rather than just ignore them and let their day get worse. We should help people and stop the habit of ignoring them because they may be in danger and you may not even know it. So we should definitely start helping people, giving breaks to people who are down on their luck because if you were in their position I am sure you would want to be helped but you should start helping as well.