I Usually Don't Give a Dime!

I usually don’t give a dime (damn) about beggars. We usually don’t, do we? I, or perhaps most of us, have the notion that they just inherited the "begging" act -- if not already in their genes.

To the adult beggars we usually think they are more capable than just begging, thus usually makes us refuse to give a dime. We assume they just think they got no other way but ask and beg. I am not naive to how a true beggar feels.

I have experienced being really broke for almost 2 days and eating only a loaf - half of it each day. It was when I was still a student away from home and all the ATM networks are either unavailable or offline. I didn't have a mobile phone to text or call for financial back up. I used up my last bunch of pennies to pay my way to the nearest ATM hoping I can take out a few bills. But the digits show zeros. That was really pain in the ... stomach?

Tonight, January 10, 2006, I was going home from a shopping spree (thanks to SM Gift Checks). As the jeepney (bound for Philcoa/Quezon Cityhall from SM North Edsa) stopped, a kid crawled on his feet in the jeepney and started wiping each passenger’s shoe. It was not unusual for me for I’ve seen this a lot of times already — AND I USUALLY DON’T GIVE A DAMN.

But that night, I was annoyed with heavy coins in my pocket. I gave them all away to a kid who climbed in the jeepney I'm riding in to wipe the dust off our shoes with a not so clean cloth. There was nothing special after I emptied my pocket.

But as we rode off, I saw the kid sat on the pavement, counted his coins, smiled and look away - as if he was looking at a beautiful sunset in the horizon. He did not look back and smiled at me to give a thank you look (nobody seemed to teach them how to). His mind was carried away somewhere unseen. His far-fetched eyes and smile meant something more.

The kid’s smile was comparable to a man winning a big prize and rightly went on dreaming away with imaginations -- perhaps buying a luxurious car.

The kid's expression made my night. I guess it made me smile too. That smile was really different. It was sparkling. We both sparked.

It gave me the genuine definition of being "generous."