As we departed our church fellowship hall this past Sunday MJ and I encountered an African American man in a wheelchair. He had one leg with the pant leg tied at the knee. We passed and spoke to him whereupon he asked if I had 50 cents for him to go to a local store and buy some baloney. I gave him more than his request and wondered what store sold baloney for 50 cents. I have been asked for money but never 50 cents. When I gave him some money he rolled out the door and towards the market.

The degradation of poverty is real. I have often thought that a dollar is a lot of money when you do not have one. What goes on in the mind of a hungry person? How does it feel to be so hungry that 50 cents is a big ask?

Proud we are that we have worked hard and succeeded in our capitalist society. We pulled ourselves up by our bootstraps and discovered the blessings of America. Some faiths teach that to serve God is to become wealthy. That train does not stop at all stations.

When I was growing up I knew a lot of poor people. I was one. I wore shoes year-round but the kids the next street over saved their shoes for school and church. For a significant time after I moved out on my own, I survived on sparse rations and my clothes hung from my frame. I was working 12 – 16 hours per day. I understood the meaning of 50 cents.

When our land is beset by economic travail we seek the poorest among us to blame for the dilemma. If it was not for the fruit pickers we would have more. Have you ever picked fruit for a living?

Not long ago a couple of men got out of their pick-up truck and began to retrieve the rubbish from the trash cans. I greeted one and he stared at me. I have emptied rubbish for a living and some stared at me rather than speak.

Not everyone who extends a needy hand is a con. Many live in Dante’s Inferno while we live in Heaven on Earth…