I sat at the light in my warm car and gave him nothing.
As I drove off, we made eye contact...
...but it was a busy corner with lots of traffic so I kept driving.
I cannot seem to forget the man.
I have seen MANY people with signs in many cities and countries and MOSTLY in my work...
...and sometimes I give them something and sometimes I don't.
But this man looked me straight in the eye...
...and I drove on.
It brings to mind a brief interview I saw this week on CNN about a new program that takes people off the streets. Most of the people who receive housing do very well but one of the men went back to drinking. They did not kick him out of the apartment because he was old and frail and ill (from his drinking).
The interviewer wondered if it was "fair" that this man be allowed to stay in his little apartment.
FAIR: treating people in a way that does not favor some over others
It may not seem fair for this man to be in that apartment...
...but it seems MORE fair than the fact that I was born with food and a roof and clothing and love while so many others on this earth have nowhere near what I simply received upon my birth.
Yet we humans cling to the belief that people must deserve what they get.
DESERVE: be worthy of
I honestly do not see how I am more worthy than anyone else....it just 'happened'....
...and, as my friend, Carol, who gives something to everyone she sees with a sign, said:
If that person has to stand at a corner and hold a sign to ask for help, I have to help him/her because I will never have to stand at a corner and hold a sign to get help.
You see, it isn't about WHY the person has a sign. It isn't about IF that person deserves the help. It is just that that person HAS a sign and NEEDS help.
So she helps them.
You may not think that is fair but it seems worth pondering next time you see a gal or guy with a sign.
At the very least, it can lead to awareness that they have a sign and you don't...
...which can then maybe even lead to eye contact...
...which, if nothing else, can lead to remembering....
....that, fair or not, a lot of people need...even deserve... help.
T
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