"He Looks Dangerous" cartoon by nakedpastor David Hayward
The Parable:
I am generous.
There are a few charities I support. Plus I give loose change (Do you know of any other kind of change?) to panhandlers (Did you know they call them panhandlers because they have their arms stuck out like a panhandle?).
Gimme gimme gimme.
So, I give for three reasons:
1. to get them to shut up
2. to make myself feel good
3. to impress those watching
But out here in the desert I'm not willing to risk any loss whatsoever for a straggler. Especially one who looks like that.
Do you ever get a vibe off of someone just by looking at them? He looks like he could really mess up my life.
Like that guy I saw near my home years ago who was on a bicycle with numerous garbage bags and signs warning full of warnings. I gave him some change. But he somehow followed me home and I ended up giving him food, a cup of tea, more money, and spent three hours of my time listening to him preach to me about the dangers of authority, the polluting properties of money, the harm of ignorance of the world's conspiracies, and the end times. It was exhausting. See? Years later he still occupies space in my brain!
When he finally left I swore I'd stay as far away from homeless migrants like him. They're like aliens who don't understand the normal complexities of a settled life.
So I won't stop to pick this guy up either.
I feel no guilt about not risking my life being turned upside down.
