by Mehdi Bouqua

On a cold winter afternoon I took a stroll down the Santa Monica Pier, as I usually look for places to explore, and interesting people to meet. Walking down the Pier, amongst the crowd, I saw many amusing things. One subject in particular that caught my eye was an elderly man standing next to his bags and bicycle while smoking a Cigarette, and looking pensively towards the horizon. I slowly approached him and said: ” What a Beautiful day it is”. He looked straight at me and responded with a big smile: “Indeed it is”.  We sparked up a conversation and I asked him questions to get to know a little about his past and his lifestyle. The most important thing I learned is that he was happier living with nothing on the street than living a normal typical materialistic life. This taught me that no matter how difficult and bad life can be, just always remember to smile and be thankful.

street photography of a homeless man by mehdi bouqua in los angeles

"Sometimes It's better not to have…

… anything and be thankful, than to have…

…the entire world and be ungrateful."