bums

I was walking along main street last night with a friend of mine. We'll call him Earl. A somewhat scary looking homeless man was sitting on the sidewalk and as we approached him, he asked me if I could spare a quarter. I told him I didn't have any change but that I probably had a couple bucks he could have. I pulled out $7.00 and handed it to him. He was very grateful. He thanked me and told me he could see Jesus in me. I told him to have a good evening. Earl doesn't like bums. He said its stupid to give them money and that these people could have jobs if they really tried. He also said that they'll just buy alcohol and drugs with the money. Maybe, maybe not. Earl told me that one of these days when I pull out my wallet one of them will grab it and run. Maybe, maybe not. I've never been afraid of these people. I almost always give when I have cash on me and none of em have ever grabbed my wallet. I probably give away less than $20.00 a month, which isn't much. Earl told me (and I vaguely remember this) that the LDS church once said not to give money to people on the streets, that the money would be better used if we donated to an organization or gave it to fast offerings, etc. I don't really have an opinion on that.

A few years ago my significant other and I invited a homeless man to Thanksgiving dinner. The man was living in a warehouse in downtown Salt Lake and I'd seen him several times around the Gateway mall. He came to the dinner and he looked really sharp. He was wearing dark jeans, a white button down shirt that was worn and stained, and a ragged black tie. He'd shaved his beard and combed his hair. Maybe not 'sharp' by most standards, but I was impressed. He was so gracious and thankful for dinner. After dinner he and I sat on the sofa and began to talk. He told me how impressed he was with our love and family unity. I asked him to tell me how he ended up where he was in life. He told me he had a wife and 4 kids and that one of his daughters got really sick, his insurance wasn't covering the bills so he had to get a second job. Things got hectic at home and ends weren't meeting. He turned to drugs and in no time lost his job, home and family. He was trying to do the right thing for his daughter and family but things got too overwhelming for him to handle. He said it all happened so fast and he found himself on the streets. I'm not condoning the fact that he turned to drugs nor am I saying it's ok, but I have no idea what it would be like to go through that.

I've volunteered a couple times at The Road Home and I've heard some devastating stories of abuse, illness, disabilities, accidents, etc. People who are really trying to build a better life, and a lot who have landed in these situations because of events totally out of their control.

All I'm saying is that no one has any room to judge. We don't know how they got in the places they are, but it's not our place to assume. If $5.00 here and there will put a smile on someones face and get me an occasional 'God Bless You' -that's enough for me. And if God gets mad at me for giving some cash to a bum and not all of it to a foundation, well, I'll deal with that later...but I'm not too worried about it.

God has blessed me a lot in my life. I know I need to recognize that more. We probably all do. Earl and I had a good talk about it at dinner and I think his perspective changed a little. ...and we're still friends. ;)