Stories by rainbowSmiles (3 matches)

Helping a Little Girl on the Street

Her facial deformities make her look scary. She is around eight or nine years old and she begs for living.   The first time I saw her I got a fright and almost squealed. A few times after than I handed over some coins. Later, I felt annoyed with her and her parents for scaring others to get money. Eventually I thought of giving some more money or talking to her but I was worried she might become a nuisance, so I didn't. I told myself she probably wouldn't understand my language, but that was just an excuse and I felt bad about it.   Today, when I saw her sitting on the footpath counting coins, I thought she would come to my car and beg but she didn’t. I started walking home from my car but then thought maybe I could do some good here if I could overcome my inhibitions, discomfort ... Read Full Story >>

5338 Reads

What Happens When We Give What We Need?

One afternoon, I joined CharityFocus folks to distribute food to homeless people. We went around a few streets in Manhattan. I was at the office in the morning, a little overloaded with work, and had plans to travel back to India.  Still, I  wanted to take part in this activity in the afternoon.  We gathered at a coffee shop and othe members of the group came with lots of food packaged properly for distributing.  The first person we offered food to cried at the gesture of lovingly being offered food. This was an emotional moment for all of us and really touched me. After this, the rest of our food distribution happened at a particular place near Port Authority where many such needy people sit. Here the food was distributed quickly with a crowd surrounding us and receiving our  packets. Our activity got over by 5:00 pm and we started back to our homes. However, I ... Read Full Story >>

4794 Reads

The Best Tea-Time Ever With An Unlikely Friend

I wanted to have tea with Nirad, in a tea break during an Inclusion retreat. Nirad is a person with a disability (a paraplegic in a wheelchair). I was holding the cup so he could sip tea. I was being careful and poured a small quantity in his mouth. I enjoyed concentrating on each moment and listening deeply to do a good job with serving tea. We were immediately connected and befriended each other during this time. Two other retreat participants joined and then there were four us, people talking about a variety of topics which ranged from how Nirad progressed in his education with grit to cool ones like how he maintains his weight, etc. These conversations brought smiles and it seemed we all knew each other from a long time ago. In subtle ways, we quietly felt the connection. When we finished tea, I felt like tying a wrist thread for Nirad. The wrist-band had the letters ... Read Full Story >>

2379 Reads



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