Full Days

Hello,

Last Wednesday, my day off was packed with activities. Does that mean that we have lived here so long that I let myself get involved in more things? Maybe.

The first unexpected thing was that I was in the back yard when a woman going by in the alley stopped and asked if I had a plunger. “Yes, I will go get it,” I told her as I turned and dashed up the stairs to the bathroom, grabbed the plunger, swooshed back downstairs, and handed her the desired object. She assured me she would be right back so I busied myself pulling a few random weeds.

She did indeed come back promptly. “Thank you,” she signed as she handed back the plunger.

“My husband…,” she hesitated, “We are getting a divorce. He did this to me.” And she pointed to the gap in her mouth where a tooth belonged. “Now I have to find some breakfast for my children. Could they pull weeds for you or mow the lawn?”

“No, that would not work,” I said, “but I have some cereal I could give you for breakfast.”

I then ran back upstairs only to not be able to find the full box of cereal. I grabbed the open box that was left from the grandchildren visit. I realized that I could also give her some crackers and cheese sticks that were also left from the grandchildren visit. I also spotted a full, unopened bag of trail mix consisting of seeds, nuts, and dried fruit. She took all of those items and thanked me. She then wondered about a church that might be a source of help. I told her, “I am serving a neighborhood lunch at St. Paul’s,” and told her the location.

Now I wonder should I have explained to her that I was not the home owner and not responsible for the lawn. But it bothers me that many people complain about people accepting handouts, but some of them would work and then buy the same things. The problem is how to make that dignified work happen on a regular basis.

Paula