Three Great Posts On Panhandling

Earlier this week Dominic Mapstone posted “Why You Shouldn’t Give Money to Panhandlers” on change.org. Although I don’t agree with Dominic I am glad he brought up the topic. I am not a big blog commenter. I hate to type and written word is not my forte’. But I did post a few. What always gets me going when this topic comes up is how ‘housed people’ so naturally believe that homeless people should be removed of the freedom of choice – “I give food because homeless people are not smart enough to use money as I think they should”! INSANE!

Then this showed up. On The Adventures of Homeless Girl the most wonder post “Should You Give A Homeless Person Money?”

I just love this:

I decided that when I give money to a homeless person or anybody who asks, it is a gift. So when I give it to them it is no longer mine but theirs.

And when I give a gift to my friends for Christmas or birthdays I don’t tell them what to do with it or what to buy with it because it is no longer mine.

And so when I give to the homeless, I am not their parent or guardian to make that judgment and assume that they are going to use it for something else. And even if they do, so what? If you are so concerned about them not doing drugs or consuming alcohol then why not pay for their rehabilitation or take them to counseling, speak to them about their situation rather than ignoring their presence and forgetting they are human beings

So please remember this the next time you see them. You have no obligation to give but if you do give you have no right to judge.

Isn’t that AWESOME?

And just like dumbster diving the good stuff is always at the bottom so I saved the best for last.  A while back a good friend sent me this post he said “thank you”

on every block, there is someone
who is homeless

I’ve come to ignore them

in Jon’s occupation we’ve helped a lot
of homeless and extremely poor people

I’ve become jaded, cynical
always ready to say “no”
I’ve learned from Robert and Petey and Leslie and Harold and Jose
and many many others
that our good intentions often were turned into abuse
…of themselves, their families, and the people who helped them

however…yesterday
the man Kat helped came back
and said “thank you”

she did not question his motive when he asked for ”a couple of dollars for food”
she did not hesitate to open her heart and her hands to give him what he needed

and a little while later he came back

he had a bottle of Coke in his hands
and I remarked that he had purchased a Coke to drink

and he replied, “I bought a hot dog, too.”
and he said “thank you.”

he remembered the nice lady
who gave him a couple of dollars
and he came back to say “thank you”

and I learned something from Kat
and from the man
and I won’t always be so cynical, so fearful
so unlike Jesus

the next time the man asks
“do you have a couple of dollars…?”