Have you seen this 20/20 series on ABC? Is pretty interesting and quite thought provoking at times. Was watching last night and there was a situation where young kids were on the street in obvious distress and very few people stopped to help. Pretty scary actually.
Last Saturday morning, the wife and myself were grocery shopping and close to being done when a very uncomfortable situation transformed right in front of our eyes. There was a couple shopping and the woman was becoming irritated with her mate to the point where profanity and F-bombs were flying from her mouth; all because the man wanted a package of chicken. It got to the point that we made the effort just to leave the immediate area, just in case something really started to happen. Besides being incredibly embarrassed for this couple, I really felt sorry for this man. I would never put up with something one speaking to me in this manner, married and in love or not. All he wanted was some chicken.
So we were shopping again this morning and I thought about last weekend and what had happened. It is so easy to become cynical in the society we are living. I really feel like I should of said something of comfort to the man. But then these thoughts start to creep in: "What if she has a gun, and she is already this mad over a package of chicken?" "What if I do say something to this man, and he takes offense to me saying something negative about his mate, even though she is treating him below a third class citizen?"
What would you do?
This takes me back 15 years ago. I was driving home from work very early on a Sunday morning, 2:00 am to be specific. A car is parked in the middle of the road and a man and woman are standing in the middle of the street yelling and screaming at each other, waving arms, and something just did not feel right. I kept on driving past. Never even looked back. I have always wondered, was this a set up? Or was there a real situation going on here and he or she needed help? Did some one else stop and get robbed or car jacked? This happened in Richmond in a not so nice neighborhood.
What would you do?
After some discussion about the show last night and what happened last weekend, the wife said, "maybe we should of acted last weekend and said something; we need to have faith and the understanding that everything will work out and we can not just sit by and while something is happening and do NOTHING." What would you do?
1 comment:
Jeff - I have seen these shows on 20/20 (there is an entire series)and have always been amazed by the bravery of some women with children in tow. I have three kids and usually choose the safer of the options because of them. I do believe there is a lesson for them to learn in helping people, but am never sure if we are in danger.
We used to live near Orlando and in Fort Myers, Florida. During those years (15 of them) I have found dozens of similar situations. It never seemed as if someone's life were in danger, but it did seem as if it could have been a set-up. As my children grow a little older each year, I may find more bravery in stepping into these situations to help. I hope I do.
Thanks for the thought-provoking post!
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