CHARITY WRAPPED IN DIGNITY
She asked him, "How much are you selling the eggs for?"
The old seller replied to her, "1cedi for an egg, Madam."
She said to him, "I will take 6 eggs for 5 cedis, or I will leave."...
The old seller replied, "Come take them at the price you want... May be this is a good beginning because I have not been able sell to anyone today."
The rich woman took them and walked away with a feeling that she has won. She got into her fancy car, went to pick her friend, and invited her to a posh restaurant. She and her friend sat down and ordered what they liked. They ate a little and left a lot of what they ordered.
Then she went to pay the bill. The bill was 140 cedis. She gave him 150 cedis and said to the owner of the restaurant: "Keep the change."
This incident may seem quite normal to the owner of the restaurant. But it is very painful for the poor egg seller.
The bottom line is:
Why do we always show that we have the power when we buy from the needy and the poor? And why are we generous with those who do not need our generosity?
Every time a poor child comes to me to sell something simple, I remember a tweet from the son of a rich man who said, "After every prayer my father used to buy simple goods from poor people at expensive prices, even though he did not need them. Sometimes he used to pay more for them. I used to get concerned by this act and I asked him about it. Then my father told me:"
It is a charity wrapped with dignity, my daughter
She asked him, "How much are you selling the eggs for?"
The old seller replied to her, "1cedi for an egg, Madam."
She said to him, "I will take 6 eggs for 5 cedis, or I will leave."...
The old seller replied, "Come take them at the price you want... May be this is a good beginning because I have not been able sell to anyone today."
The rich woman took them and walked away with a feeling that she has won. She got into her fancy car, went to pick her friend, and invited her to a posh restaurant. She and her friend sat down and ordered what they liked. They ate a little and left a lot of what they ordered.
Then she went to pay the bill. The bill was 140 cedis. She gave him 150 cedis and said to the owner of the restaurant: "Keep the change."
This incident may seem quite normal to the owner of the restaurant. But it is very painful for the poor egg seller.
The bottom line is:
Why do we always show that we have the power when we buy from the needy and the poor? And why are we generous with those who do not need our generosity?
Every time a poor child comes to me to sell something simple, I remember a tweet from the son of a rich man who said, "After every prayer my father used to buy simple goods from poor people at expensive prices, even though he did not need them. Sometimes he used to pay more for them. I used to get concerned by this act and I asked him about it. Then my father told me:"
It is a charity wrapped with dignity, my daughter
