On my way to work there has been a homeless man standing on a corner the last three mornings in a row. Today it's raining and he has no umbrella. But he is still out there, with his sign saying "Homeless, no alcohol, no drugs, please help."
He sort of looks like Santa, long white beard, big belly, kind eyes. I'm very sad for him right now, because if he is choosing to stand outside in the rain, that's probably his only option.
Normally I feel only half bad for the homeless beggars I see, but with this economy the rate of homeless people near me seems to be jumping, a lot. I don't live in a big city, I live near dead cities; and in Akron and Cleveland where the only good things we had (rubber, Labron James) are long gone, I feel like more and more people are resorting to begging verses trying harder to get a job and stay on their feet. And these people I don't feel sorry for. If so many people didn't live off of the government people like me wouldn't fork over so much in taxes every pay check and I'd have more money to spend... basically they'd have more money to make, and everything would be a lot better. But since a far too large percent of people are living on unemployment, food stamps, and welfare, it takes twice as long for me to earn enough money to blow some on fun stuff. Homeless people normally make me angry.
But this guy, in the rain... I feel genuinely sad for him. Especially since I've started typing this the rain has picked up and there is no way he isn't freezing. I want to buy him an umbrella on my lunch. And 50 nuggets from McDonalds. And let him sit in my car so he can sleep in peace.
I try to remember to simply be compassionate rather than judge when I don't know a person's background or details. I fail about 97% of the time, but I keep trying. Compassion makes me a happier woman.
ReplyDeleteYou should; homeless people make me sad. I used to have somewhat of a level of compassion but I found out first hand what it feels like to be in their shoes. I was homeless from november 2009 to February 2010.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I didn't spend my time outside begging, I lived in a homeless shelter. Now that I'm thankfully out of that, I feel so bad for them that are still stuck out there.
"...people didn't live off of the government people like me wouldn't fork over so much in taxes every pay check and I'd have more money to spend."
ReplyDeleteSorry, but I thank you for your moneys. :3
And I don't ever feel sorry for homeless people, since I know the few homeless beggars around here and they're just drunks and druggies, standing at the middle of intersections holding their signs.
Yes, I'm heartless. :(
I feel bad for anyone I see on the street, but part of me holds back. I saw an article once where it turned out that some people were well off. They dressed up and stood on corners with signs. And I hate to give money to those who are just going to blow it on alcohol.
ReplyDeleteI wish I had the compassion you do.
New to your blog, and excited to read more!
I have to fight the urge to hand a few homeless people job applications. There are a few Santa homeless people that genuinely make me sad for them. But mostly I'm just annoyed. That probably makes me a crappy person.
ReplyDeleteOh well.
I know exactly how you feel about the homeless guy in the rain. I never give money but I always offer to buy them a meal. Heck it was the dead of winter and I gave a homeless lady my down coat. She needed it way more than I did. There are homeless shelters in every city (I'd hope) but some of them would rather be on the streets. I think they feel safer that way.
ReplyDeleteIt's such a horrible & sad way to live but all we can do is continue to show compassion and safely help where we can :)
Hey there! Don't complain about high taxes before you've lived and worked in Finland! Sweden and Denmark are actually even worse.. that's the price we pay for being so called welfare countries.
ReplyDeleteThe total tax revenue as percentage of GDP was 28.3 percent in the United States in 2007. In Finland the same figure was 43 percent. And in Denmark 48.9 !
We have a growing problem of foreign beggars in our streets. They look very poor and in need of help but rumour has it that they are working for mafia. I mean, where did they get money to travel here from the other side of Europe in the first place?
I don't know what I'm supposed to feel when I pass a beggar.. maybe I start doing like my dad did in Vyborg, Russia. He didn't give any money because it might have been used to buy vodka, but instead bought a hot dog for the beggar :D