12-14-2004, 05:48 PM
The homeless.
I have been raised to always view people as people, and not as their function. I often get very irate with students at my university who are rude to the dining hall staff, the janitors or the security guards. I expect to be treated with a level of respect from the people I pay to do a certain service (whether that is provide food, a clean place to live, or security), but this requires a mutual level of respect on my part.
I work for a retail company on Newbury Street in Boston. Most lurkers will be unfamiliar with Newbury Street, suffice it to say it is the epicenter of fashion in Boston. At my store alone, it is not rare to sell thousands of dollars worth of retail to one customer.
Because of the large flow of money in the area, Newbury Street has a number of resident homeless people. I never feel an obligation to hand them money, but instead an obligation to at least recognize their existence as another human being. I make a habit of making eye contact and at the very least wishing them the best, or asking how they are doing. If I have the time, I will spend a few minutes and have a conversation with him or her.
If I have a good sales day and I have some extra cash in my wallet, I will give a few dollars to him or her. I never give much, but some days the conversations I have with the homeless are the best I have. Consider it a service rendered.
Cheers,
Munk
I have been raised to always view people as people, and not as their function. I often get very irate with students at my university who are rude to the dining hall staff, the janitors or the security guards. I expect to be treated with a level of respect from the people I pay to do a certain service (whether that is provide food, a clean place to live, or security), but this requires a mutual level of respect on my part.
I work for a retail company on Newbury Street in Boston. Most lurkers will be unfamiliar with Newbury Street, suffice it to say it is the epicenter of fashion in Boston. At my store alone, it is not rare to sell thousands of dollars worth of retail to one customer.
Because of the large flow of money in the area, Newbury Street has a number of resident homeless people. I never feel an obligation to hand them money, but instead an obligation to at least recognize their existence as another human being. I make a habit of making eye contact and at the very least wishing them the best, or asking how they are doing. If I have the time, I will spend a few minutes and have a conversation with him or her.
If I have a good sales day and I have some extra cash in my wallet, I will give a few dollars to him or her. I never give much, but some days the conversations I have with the homeless are the best I have. Consider it a service rendered.
Cheers,
Munk