Day 8:
My friends and I were talking outside one night. All of a sudden, this homeless man rises from where he lay and starts bee lining for all of us. Keep in mind, I'm mid-conversation and I do not feel like being disturbed. I am not afraid of the man who is quickly approaching, but his forthcoming presence is beginning to cause anxiety. In the blink of an eye, he was right behind us and had ambushed us with the classic "times are hard" line. My entire group naturally stopped everything and dispersed to our respective vehicles. On the way home, I was wondering why the homeless man seemed to possess such a power to break up a social group using only his presence. Maybe it was the setting-night time in front of a closing museum. Maybe his story wasn't convincing enough -coming over to beg for money while wearing some brand new Timberland boots and a semi clean polo. For some reason, not only did I not want to help him, but I also felt the need to get away from him as quickly as possible.
I want to emphasize that homeless people are people before anything. I also want to emphasize that giving is important. With that being said, its important to be able to differentiate between a con artist and someone actually in need.
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