This is a very moving essay.
I think we tend to discount (or choose not to see) all the people in our own lives who have had second chances. Young people who battled substance abuse for a while but have turned their lives around; immigrants who came here and instead of working as a nurse (their profession in their country of origin) started on the housekeeping staff of a hotel or hospital until they learned enough English to restart their careers; adults who were in accidents or suffered a stroke; injured in the military who had to relearn how to walk/talk/stand.
Taking the time to see people is the first step IMHO towards becoming someone who can give other people the opportunity to reboot.