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The man waded through the knee-high snow, through the driveway, through the walkway, up the steps, and now the man was at the door.
He rang once.
I should open the door. He could be in trouble and needing help.
I should not open the door. He could be out to do mischief. Though it would not have made sense for him to ring if he was.
I stood breathless and undecided, just a few feet away from him, separated by the door.
Then he turned around.
And trudging through the snow tunnel he had created, he went down the steps, through the walkway, through the driveway, and now he was on the street.
Away from my house, letting me off the hook.
Who was that man, and what did he want? I hope he wasn’t in any trouble. On a day like this.
Photo courtesy of NOAA Photo Library
The Novice Gardener 
Stranger danger is so deeply ingrained isn’t it? That was an intriguing story, I could think of so many possible sequels… great stuff!
Stranger danger and mind your own business are mantras repeated to us since the day we were born. That’s why maybe we’re reluctant to offer help. I’m looking for excuses! 🙂
I don’t know what I would have done, either. I would have been relieved to see him walk away and then would have felt guilty. It’s just so hard to know.
Exactly how I felt! It’s such a dilemma, isn’t it? You wanna be helpful, of course, but you also don’t wanna put yourself in a compromising situation. Thanks for understanding my indesiciveness. 🙂
This reminds of a similar thing that happened to my mother. I shall have to write about it now!
Looking forward to hearing about it, Noony! XOXO
Such a neat encapsulation of one human’s frailty, but then dramatic, almost abstract photo as the denouement somehow expands it to an ‘everyman’ story. Makes us think, yes, what would I have done.
Tish, that was the most incredible assessment I’ve ever received for my writing. Thank you so much! I have a lot to learn, so I just started following you. I have a feeling I’ll be getting a few pointers. 🙂
That’s a very nice thing to say. Just hang on to your lightness of touch and clear focus and you won’t go wrong!
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So hard isn’t it? I had a man approach me in front of the liquor store today. I knew if I gave him money – he would just spend it on booze right away. I wanted to tell him that in order to be more credible, he should move across the street to the front of the grocery store but instead I simply said hello and kept going. Afterwards, I thought, wasn’t spending money on booze exactly what I was going to do? Even if I am to sip mine from a nice glass in a reasonable manner. Then I felt awful. Your story made me think that perhaps I won’t walk again.
Thank you for such a beautiful, honest, thoughtful post.
That happened to me! A man asked me for money in front of a grocery store, but the liquor store is right next door. I invited him to come inside the store to buy him food, but he decided to leave. He was clean-cut and well-spoken, so it was a little shocking. It’s so hard to know exactly what the right thing to do in situations like these. If we gave them money, would we have helped or made things worse? You’ll just never know. I’m so glad you shared your story, Lindy. Made me realize I’m not alone and we all go through similar dilemma every day. XOXO
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