Beggars ain't no uncommon sight in Malaysia. Homeless people too, for that matter. You see them all around - Petaling Street, wet markets, train stations...basically, anywhere with a good flow of people.
I was warned that London is no exception. Don't trust beggars, they say.
'There was this once I dropped a beggar a quid. Right after that, he got up and hopped into a cab!' '
Oh! There was even this one time I saw a beggar using a cell phone! And a rather recent model, for that matter!'
On my side, I never really respected beggars. I've always found them lazy. When I see a beggar, in my head, I would instantly reflect on a lecture that my dad would always repeated to us children, 'You have one brain, the person beside you has one brain as well. If that person can achieve with that one brain, you can achieve with your one brain as well.'
I thought beggars are beggars (and deserve to be beggars) because they did not bother putting any effort into things at all. Their demeanor and disposition disgusted me sometimes. Most of them who are perfectly fine, would usually be slumped against an office building with a sign saying 'Homeless. Spare change please?'.
Ugghhh...they don't even bother saying what they want! Prime example of laziness!
But one day, on the way to uni, I saw something different.
I saw a beggar, dressed in stained, black clothing with soiled beanie over his head. He seemed perfectly fine, like most beggars in London. But one thing of him stood out - he had his kness pressed against the cold, concrete sidewalk. His body was bended with his head on the floor as well. In his hands was a Styrofoam cup, tightly held in front of his head.
Something about being in this position made things different. Being on bended knee, I know for a fact, is the most vulnerable position - with your body fully exposed to any kind of external force. Being on bended knee is painful. Being on bended knees takes effort.
Hmm...on bended knees...something to think about.
