Helped a random beggar, didn't expected the impact of the gesture

The district I live in is rather poor so I'm used to beggars; especialy junkies and drop-out in their twenties and thirties. Tonight, I came home from work pretty late and this guy just asked me for change. I felt like making a real difference so I gave him quite a lot more than that. At first he didn't believed it and wanted to be sure I could spare it. He asked about my job, so I told him about it. Then we've talked about his prospects at rebuilding a real life. We've stayed on that street corner a very long time. We found some shared interests in music, and sang a few songs. He told me about his drugs habit, how he can't quit because it's the only relief in his life. Told me about this job he has lined up, he'll meet someone tomorrow. I tried to give as much advice as I could. I felt helpless although utterly privileged. He told me he wanted to rebuild his life and make a difference in someone's life the way I did tonight.

The odds aren't really good for him but I hope he'll be okay.