Taking the time to talk to people that would normally be written off because of a language barrier:

Last night the wife and I were at the bar having a couple of drinks after dinner, and this little older Latino guy came in. He was in a minor panic going on with “Ayudame, ayudame” and such. I was the only one in the bar that spoke a lick of Espanol, so I did my best to translate what he was saying. At first I thought he was saying he had been robbed at the park up the street, and they had taken all of his clothes and money and beaten him up. After listening a little more, I started to understand what he was really saying. He was hungry, needed a place to “chower” and “chave” and a place to wash his clothes. Being the soft hearted, liberal pussy I am, I wracked my brain for one of the local resource centers for migrant workers in the area. After much drunken brain wracking, I remembered a place down the street and gave him my best directions (if izquierda isn’t left, btw, I could have sent him into a whole other kettle of refried beans). He took it like I was throwing him out or sending him to be killed and sat down quietly for a few minutes. Only a few minutes. Suddenly, with great aplomb, he got up and started singing La Bamba and dancing. We wuz all “Whadafuck?!” and he was like, “Baila la bamba que nececita una poca de gracia!” n shit. We were only mildly amused. After the owner of the bar chilled him out, he said he was sorry and sat back down. Then he got to the point. He said in mildly clear English “Can I have one beer?” That was it. I told him if he had money, he could have a beer, but alas, he was dead broke. That’s when it started to get not so cute. He said, if he didn’t get a beer, he’d stay all night and sleep there. Que exasperando. I mean, shit. I honestly tried to get the guy some help, and all he wanted was a beer. Made me wish I’da just not even bothered to talk to the guy in the first place. I should have just kept it shut and shooed him along like everyone else.

ON THE OTHER HAND

I got a call this morning from a doctor that sounded like he’d suffered a bad stroke. He was hard to understand, but I took the time and effort to listen. I didn’t have to, really, I could have just pushed him on to voice mail, but I didn’t I took the time to listen to what he needed (he was trying to get us in on a federal survey for a specific program, no biggie even). I could tell that it was a chore for him to make these calls, but my taking the time to listen really did him well. After I took the pertinent info down, we had a little chit chat about how great of a town B-more is. I could tell that little exchange brightened his day. All because I took the effort to listen.

I know what you’re thinking “yeah, so this makes you a better than me or something?” Honestly, if you don’t take the time to at least give people a chance to be human, then yes, I am better than you.