Langston Hughes' story about Mrs. Luella Bates Washington Jones and Roger is a message about kindness, sympathy and trust. Set in the 1950s, during the meeting between our two characters, Hughes demonstrates forgiveness, compassion and second chances. In “Thank You, Ma’am,” Hughes delivers his message with an intensity of forgiveness and sympathy. Roger attempts to steal her wallet and, having every reason to take this boy to the police, Mrs. Luella Bates Washington Jones does not. After asking some questions, he discovers that he also has no one to go home with. In any case, through sympathy and forgiveness she meets Roger with empathy, going so far as to trust him and invite him into her home. He also finds out that he hasn't had dinner and that Roger has probably been hungry for a while. When Mrs. Jones treats Roger with such kindness, instead of needing to see him punished, he is shocked. We readers are encouraged to think about how a person who makes a mistake can become a criminal or create worse situations for their life, when no one is there to guide them towards better future choices. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay As we read this story, Hughes connects both characters for us. Roger's empty house leaves him alone with no one to positively influence him and Mrs. Jones steps in and becomes that missing role model. He tells her that he didn't mean to rob her and this shows his remorse by apologizing. She herself, having done some wrong things in her life, wants to give him a second chance. Mrs. Jones is showing compassion through her understanding of the situation Roger finds himself in. She asks: "Isn't there anyone at home to wash your face?", he tells her "No", she also notices that his face is so dirty and decides that she will take him home and wash his face herself . After arriving at Mrs. Jones' house, she shares dinner with him and trusts that he will not run away. It has to be better for Roger instead of just throwing him in prison. It would have been worse there, he thought. However, another lesson we can learn is to be kind to each other and take care of ourselves. In the incident between Mrs. Jones and Roger, she could have simply called the police and caused Roger even more problems. Instead, she took on the responsibility of teaching him how to be fair and trustworthy. This leads us to believe that we can make a difference in the lives of others if we refuse to act on fear alone. My pastor, Jesse, once preached about forgiveness and giving people second chances. He kept having things stolen from his yard; his children's tools, bicycles, toys and even his surfboards were taken away. During this period of theft, he became cold and angry at his community. “Why should I trust anyone,” he thought. After weeks of anger, he prayed and thought about the anger he was feeling. Jesse told us that we never know the circumstance that people are in and to not make judgments when we don't truly understand this person's situation. They could have stolen to feed their family and felt they had no other options. I believe Hughes delivers his message the same way my pastor did. When Mrs. Luella Bates Washington Jones is wronged by Roger, she gives him a second chance. As she leads him to the door, he barely lets out a "Thank you ma'am" as she rubs it in his face. With sympathy and compassion, Roger teaches, we always have the opportunity to make the right decision and be good to each other..