My Son Mocked a Homeless Man, so I Decided to Swap Their Lives for a Week — Story of the Day

When my lazy, spoiled son crossed a line, I made an unthinkable decision: to swap lives for seven days with a homeless man he mocked. He'd learn hard lessons... or be out. What could go wrong?

I hadn’t seen the world outside of work and home for a long time. Since my husband passed, everything became one big responsibility.

I worked all day, and when I came home, there was a pile of things waiting for me — cleaning, laundry, cooking.

But all of that — for whom?

For Eidan, my 30-year-old son, who sat at home, waiting for someone to solve his problems.

"Mom, I can't work right now, I don’t know what to do."

That is how almost every conversation ended when I asked him to stop sitting on my neck.

"You've been sitting at home for two years, Eidan! You've completely lost any motivation, and I can't keep carrying all of this on my own!"

"I just want some peace."

"Peace won’t pay the grocery bills."

Only my late husband had any influence over him. But I… well, I simply couldn’t throw him out into the street. The only thing he agreed to was going for walks with me in the evening.

One of those evenings, as we saw a man sitting on the curb. His clothes were dirty, his face worn out. He held only an empty paper cup in his hands. Eidan stopped, noticing his glance.

"Sir, can you spare me some water, please?"

"What, are you kidding me? Maybe I should order you a pizza too? Get lost."

The man lowered his head, and I saw his face flinch with embarrassment. I couldn’t hold back.

"Eidan! Apologize right now!"

"You’re out of your mind! Apologize to this loser?"

"Do you only respect what benefits you?"

"Mom, don’t start."

I stood there, watching the man. He didn’t look up. I couldn’t stop the tears. Eidan shrugged and walked away as if nothing had happened.

Hours later, I looked into Eidan's room. The floor was covered in dirty socks, and the bed wasn’t made.

"Please, clean here."

Eidan didn’t even look at me. "Aha, Mom. Don’t bother me with your cleaning."

"Enough!"

That couldn’t go on any longer. I knew what I had to do. I grabbed my coat and went out into the night. I had to find that homeless man.

***

The following morning, I was in the kitchen, preparing breakfast. Eidan walked into the kitchen, rubbing his eyes, ready to plop down and dive into his phone as he always did. But then he stopped, frozen in place.

There was a man sitting at the table.

I could see the confusion in Eidan's eyes as he looked from me to the man, sitting there calmly, spreading Nutella on his pancakes.

"Wait a second… Mom, this is the guy. The one from last night!"

"Yes, that’s him. His name is Stephen."

"You brought him here?"

"Yes, because you owe him an apology."

Stephen looked up and gave Eidan a small smile.

"Hey, kid. Nice to meet you."

Eidan looked like he was about to explode.

"What the hell, Mom? I already told you, I’m not apologizing to some homeless guy."

I stood my ground, not backing down.

"We’re helping Stephen find a job. He lost his memory and doesn’t even know where his home is."

"This is insane. He’s making this up! You can’t seriously be asking me to live with him. This is too much."

"Then you don’t have to live here. There’s a shelter around the corner if you need somewhere to go."

I knew it was harsh, but it was the truth. He needed to hear it.

"Mom, is this a joke?"

My patience began to wear thin.

"You don’t get it, do you? You walk around like the world owes you something. You think you can just sit here, do nothing, and expect everything to be handed to you. And on top of that, you insult people!"

Stephen, who had been sitting quietly through all of this, wiped his mouth and spoke in a calm voice.

"You know, kid, life doesn’t always go the way we want. Sometimes, it’s about learning to be humble. You don’t get to choose who you respect based on what they have or don’t have."

"Oh, come on! Don’t tell me what to do!"

"I’ve had enough, Eidan! You want to keep acting like nothing matters? Fine. Here’s the deal. You get seven days. Seven days to live like Stephen. Walk in his shoes. You’ll do everything he does. You’ll work, you’ll help, you’ll clean, and you won’t complain. Show me you can do something, or you’ll be out of this house."

"You’re kicking me out?"

"No. I’m giving you a chance to change. If you want respect, you have to show respect."

I was angry, but I felt a pit of guilt in my stomach.

Have I done the wrong thing?

No. I haven’t. Eidan needed to hear this, whether he liked it or not. He had to wake up.

Eidan stared at me. "You think this is funny? You’re asking me to live like him?"

"No more free rides. It’s time to face the real world."

"This is bullshit," Eidan muttered, storming back toward his room.

I watched him go, and my heart sank. But I knew that was the only way. I’d done my part. It was time for him to do his.

***

Eidan left the next morning. I tried not to think about it. I had to keep going, pull myself together.

And with Stephen there, I decided the best thing to do was just keep busy. He helped me with the lawn, then we transplanted the roses.

Stephen turned out to be a real expert in gardening.

He knew everything about how to properly take care of plants. I watched as he carefully trimmed the bushes, and I began to feel like at least something in life was falling into place.

"Stephen, this might be your kind of work."

"I don’t remember much about work those days, but..." He paused, wiping his brow, and smiled. "I’ve always liked this kind of thing. It’s a simple, honest job."

"You don’t remember anything?"

Stephen smiled faintly, his eyes growing distant. "I remember waking up on a park bench one day. I don’t know how long I’d been there or why... everything just... vanished. Like a clean slate."

"Did you go to the police?"

Stephen sighed and straightened up.

"They took my report, but without documents, they couldn’t do much. They told me I should go to a shelter until they figured things out."

"That must have been hard — not knowing who you are."

"It was. I worked odd jobs here and there, but no one wants to hire you without papers. Moreover, people avoid you... That’s just how it is."

We continued working, quietly, each lost in our own thoughts. I kept asking myself questions I couldn’t answer.

Did I do the right thing with Eidan? Is it too much for him?

Stephen noticed the shift in my mood.

"He’ll manage. He’s a stubborn kid."

"Yeah, I know. The sun’s going down. How about a barbecue in the garden?"

"Oh, that sounds like luxury!"

I made homemade lemonade, hoping this small gesture would show Stephen how grateful I was for his help. We sat, exhausted, in the backyard. For a brief moment, I allowed myself to relax.

But then, suddenly, I heard the sound of the gates opening. My heart skipped a beat as I turned my head.

A car was pulling into the driveway.

"Oh God, it’s my MIL, Amalia."

Stephen kept silent.

"Well, of course, Eidan must have gone to the grandmother who always let him do whatever he wanted. This is the beginning of a scandal. You'll see."

We could hear Amalia before she even stepped out of the car.

"How could you throw my grandson out onto the street! You... you!"

Suddenly, Amalia froze. She wasn’t staring at me. She was staring at Stephen.

"Stephen?"

"Amalia?"

I looked at both of them, trying to understand what was happening. It seemed like there was an untold history between them. Amalia, tilting her head slightly, studied Steven closely.

"Is this who my daughter-in-law traded her own son for?"

"Oh yes, that's me," Steven teased.

Amalia’s eyes sparkled, and I saw a smile bloom on her face.

"But you don’t look like a scoundrel, especially not like a homeless man."

"I lost my memory a year ago — mostly lived on the streets."

Amalia frowned, then let out a little laugh. "No wonder you lost your memory. Your wife was... someone you wouldn't even want to remember."

"Amalia, bite your tongue, you haven’t changed."

"It’s strange that you remember me but not her."

I watched them both, and my heart stopped. This was more than just casual conversation.

What was it that connected them? Feelings?

Instead of asking them directly, I grabbed the laptop and began searching for anything related to his family.

"Amalia — we need Steven's last name, date of birth, anything you know — we need to find his family."

Within 10 minutes, we had a phone number for his daughter. I showed Steven the screen, holding up the phone.

"Here. This is your daughter, Kyla."

Steven spoke briefly, but tears ran down his cheeks throughout the conversation. It turned out that Steven had been divorced for a long time. He had a daughter and a grandson. His grandson was coming to pick him up.

"I’m going to see them tomorrow. They’re still waiting for me."

These words gave me a sense of relief. But just as one tension faded, a new one appeared. Amalia wasn’t done with me. She turned back to me with reproach about Eidan.

"How could you throw your own child out?"

Steven unexpectedly jumped into the conversation.

"Obviously, you spoiled him. He needs to be a man. So, Amalia, you need to give him the chance to solve his own problems. Let him swim on his own."

Amalia raised an eyebrow, a playful gleam in her eyes.

"Well, try it yourself! You’re not married, Steven? Live with us, with Eidan, and we’ll see if you can handle it."

Steven laughed, looking at me and then turning back to Amalia.

"First, I need to visit him at home. His daughter and grandson are waiting. I definitely can’t miss that."

Amalia tossed her hair back, giggling. "Alright, try."

But after a few more steps toward me, Steven paused and quietly said,

"I’ll come back here. I’ll offer a man’s shoulder when all this is over."

I smiled at him, though there was still a cold sense of uncertainty in my heart. The three of us just sat there, listening to the wind and enjoying dinner, as if we’d returned to some semblance of normality.

That was the incredible beginning of a long journey for all of us, but I believed it would end in a happy ending.

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