As with the difference in the geography, so it is with the people. The massive gulf between the rich and the poor is so stark and evident wherever you go.
Whilst I was in Bethany my group were approached by a round face, rather cute, Arab boy. He must have been about five or six. He took hold of the water bottle I was carrying and began to wrestle it out of my grasp. Initially I found the situation humorous, but I then realised he was forcibly taking the bottle from me. I released my hold on the bottle and he immediate went to another member of my group and did the same. Unfortunately for the boy, this tourist wasn’t so keen to let go of the bottle she was holding. I suggested that we all give-up our water bottles to the boy. He was then able to collect four or five bottles from us, put them in a pile on the path and then went looking for more tourists.
His behaviour was at best ‘aggressive’ begging and at worst minor robbery. I can only imagine the circumstances that boy has to live in to resort to that sort of behaviour. I fear that his cute looks will not last long and his current tactics of getting bottles of water of people will end up in him getting hurt.
Before I left the boy I tried to talk with him. I got down on my knees and looked him in the face and tried to let him know that someone cared. I'm not sure he understood me, but I felt a calm and peaceful feeling between us as I spoke.
Other acts of kindness included:
7x Gave cash to a charity
5 x Gave cash to a street beggar
7 x Struck-up a cheery conversation with a stranger
1 x Gave a big smile to a stranger
1 x Put neighbours bin back after the bin-men had been 4 x Held the door open for someone
1 x Proactively ‘gave-way’ to a pedestrian
19 x Proactively ‘gave-way’ to another driver
5 x Voluntary work for Ipsos Access Panels
2 x Voluntary work within the Community 5 x Looked after a person in need
Sub total: 57
Running total: 1246Target: 3000+ in 12months
Commenced 30th November 2011
Motivation for ‘’My Ten-a-day’
One day a man was walking along the beach when he noticed a boy picking something up and gently throwing it into the ocean.
Approaching the boy, he asked, “What are you doing?”
The youth replied, “Throwing starfish back into the ocean. The surf is up and the tide is going out. If I don’t throw them back, they’ll die.”
“Son,” the man said, “don’t you realize there are miles and miles of beach and hundreds of starfish? You can’t make a difference!”
After listening politely, the boy bent down, picked up another starfish, and threw it back into the surf. Then, smiling at the man, he said, “I made a difference for that one.”
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