AT home, when i sit at my computer desk, and my eyes feel strained, i turn to my right and im greeted by a road sprawling with traffic at all times of day. Sometimes when i cant sleep at night, i sit by the window and watch a lone car or bike zoom past beneath the dull light of the street lamps.
One sleepy afternoon, as i sat chatting at my desk waiting for my friend to reply, i happened to look out the window. It was a hot sunny day and i could see right across the road. There i saw an old lady in torn and ragged clothes, her skin wrinkled with age, her back bent with the many years showing how long she had been on this ungrateful earth, a tiny bag hanging over her shoulder with the only belongings she possibly had and a 3 foot stick high enuf to support the bent over body..
The lady was begging..
She hovered around the people standing there..
I thought business as usual....
There was a man who was double her height and possibly half her age.
He hesitated for a moment, then took out a few coins and gave it to her.
She clutched the coins and moved on along the road.
And then she stopped. I thought she'd do what i have seen most beggars do. Stash the coins away in some place inside their big bag of treasures, and continue begging with a pitiful look on their faces, like they havent received anything as of that day.
But what she did next stunned me.
She didnt even see the amount lying in her hands, rather she touched it to her forehead in a sign of thanks to the Lord, and moved on.
I was guilt-ridden, although there was no one around, i felt someone had caught me red-handed...... thinking bad.....
I turned away to digest what i saw, it all happened in a matter of 2 minutes, i know i make it sound like the new serials up on channels today, where every scene is in slo-mo!!
And when i turned around again, she was gone, she walked along the road, and disappeared beyond my range of sight.
Im sure the man who spared those few coins, must have been blessed a great deal, and what amazes me, he must hardly realise it...
Im not gonna say, that from that day onwards, i give away money to every old lady i see, because i never did, and I don't think i ever will.
But what i did start doing was having a little more respect for all those people who are kind to those seemingly unfortunate people.
I started to consciously not mock beggars, (I never did it in the past, but now i watch my behaviour when they are around).
I started to be more conscious of how blessed I was.
I started to appreciate the good fortune I have.
I started to be in awe of people who would give up so little, in anticipation of nothing, but yet be blessed with more than they could ask for.
One sleepy afternoon, as i sat chatting at my desk waiting for my friend to reply, i happened to look out the window. It was a hot sunny day and i could see right across the road. There i saw an old lady in torn and ragged clothes, her skin wrinkled with age, her back bent with the many years showing how long she had been on this ungrateful earth, a tiny bag hanging over her shoulder with the only belongings she possibly had and a 3 foot stick high enuf to support the bent over body..
The lady was begging..
She hovered around the people standing there..
I thought business as usual....
There was a man who was double her height and possibly half her age.
He hesitated for a moment, then took out a few coins and gave it to her.
She clutched the coins and moved on along the road.
And then she stopped. I thought she'd do what i have seen most beggars do. Stash the coins away in some place inside their big bag of treasures, and continue begging with a pitiful look on their faces, like they havent received anything as of that day.
But what she did next stunned me.
She didnt even see the amount lying in her hands, rather she touched it to her forehead in a sign of thanks to the Lord, and moved on.
I was guilt-ridden, although there was no one around, i felt someone had caught me red-handed...... thinking bad.....
I turned away to digest what i saw, it all happened in a matter of 2 minutes, i know i make it sound like the new serials up on channels today, where every scene is in slo-mo!!
And when i turned around again, she was gone, she walked along the road, and disappeared beyond my range of sight.
Im sure the man who spared those few coins, must have been blessed a great deal, and what amazes me, he must hardly realise it...
Im not gonna say, that from that day onwards, i give away money to every old lady i see, because i never did, and I don't think i ever will.
But what i did start doing was having a little more respect for all those people who are kind to those seemingly unfortunate people.
I started to consciously not mock beggars, (I never did it in the past, but now i watch my behaviour when they are around).
I started to be more conscious of how blessed I was.
I started to appreciate the good fortune I have.
I started to be in awe of people who would give up so little, in anticipation of nothing, but yet be blessed with more than they could ask for.
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