It's nice to know there are people in this world that still have the capability to allow themselves to care. Jeanniebeanz telling about helping the abused mother and her children was most heartwarming. Unfortunately, in the area in which we live it has become apparent that more and more of the folks seeking help are using the money to get high or drunk.
Some examples: The man trying to make his way across a busy intersection on crutches while pulling an overnight bag that he repeatedly dropped. He couldn't quite seem to get the hang of crutch-bag pull-hobble. By the time he was crossing in front of the last two car lengths both cars had their windows open and were handing the man cash. He finally made his way across the street and into the parking lot of a restaurant. Miracle of miracles, he straightened up, peeled the velcro attached soft cast off his leg, tucked the whole rig under his arm and went into the restaurant. I was glad that the people in the cars that had given him money had gone through the intersection and didn't see his ruse. He managed to only jade the 25 or so cars that were still waiting on the lights.
Right after we were married my wife called me crying after her lunch hour. She had gone through Burger King and while waiting to place her order was approached by a homeless man asking for money. She didn't give him any but felt enough to buy him a combo meal. She went back through the parking lot, rolled down her window and handed the man the bag of food. He took one look at it and said, "I told you I wanted money you f&&&ing &itch!" She was frieked out enough to start rolling up the window but he still managed to throw some of the food back at her.
Just last week we were at another intersection and there was a man with a 'please help' sign. My wife took one look at him and started digging into her purse for money. I was quite taken aback by her actions because of her experience many years ago. When I looked at her with a why-would-you-do-that expression she told me to really look at him. When I did I saw that he was shaking like he had parkinson's. She said, "You can't fake that." As a nurse, she would know. It made me happy that she still felt that twinge of compassion and embarassed at myself because had she not been there, I wouldn't have given him more than a cursory glance.