Sandra was on her way home from work that evening. She only had a little further to walk before she got to the bus stop, where she would catch her next ride. It was almost 6 o’clock, and she could not get it out of her mind that the fare would have increased. At that time of day, people generally overlooked the fact that they had to pay more than usual after a long day at work. They only wanted to get home.
She took the same route to work and back every day, but that evening she had thought about taking another way to the bus stop because of something or someone she had encountered that morning.
“What was the most annoying thing that happened to you this week?” her colleague and friend had asked her that morning.
“Huh…,” she said, half scoffing and half smiling.
“What is it?” her friend had asked.
“On my way to work this morning,” Sandra began, “I had just got off a bus and had to walk a little to get the next one that would take me to work.”
“Okay…,” her friend said, paying rapt attention with both hands cupping her chin.
“It’s the same route I take every day, and even though I have always seen roadside beggars of different ages, I never expected what happened next.”
“What happened?”
“I’ve always ignored them, you know,” Sandra said. “I used to pity them so much as a child that sometimes, I asked my mum or dad to give them money.”
“What changed?” her friend asked.
“I grew up, and I learned,” Sandra said.
“What does that mean?” her friend asked.
“One of the most interesting pronouncements that Jesus made was, ‘For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away.’”
“I’ve read the parable of the talents,” her friend said. “I also find it interesting.”
“So, you understand that no one is entirely without the means to pick themselves up from the ground instead of trying to get people’s hard-earned money on the street.”
“I understand that you’re yet to get to your point,” her friend said, smiling.
“Anyway,” Sandra began, “one of them was on one of those board-like things with wheels, and he jumped at my feet when he saw that I was going to ignore him.”
Her friend giggled.
“What did you do?”
“I kicked him away, but I can’t seem to get it out of my head.”
Sandra thought about the other route she could have taken, but it was longer and more expensive, and she decided she would not change her routine because some beggar had harassed her!
What are the chances he would still be there anyway, she thought.
She removed her phone from her handbag to look at the time. She had a watch on her left wrist, but it was useless since it stopped working a few weeks ago.
“Six eleven,” she muttered as she returned the phone to her bag. She was going to get home really late, so she decided to pick up the pace.
Almost instantly, she spotted something up ahead and nearly came to a halt.
She decided to step off the pavement onto the road. It was not something she was fond of doing, but she was especially motivated this time.
She stepped down with her left foot first and immediately lost her balance. Even though she didn’t fall into the middle of the road, a vehicle ran over her before anyone could do anything about it.
Not too far from where the accident happened, the lame beggar smiled.
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