Charity or Crime?

In these times where wrongdoings driven by poverty are rampant, I ask myself who or what to blame.

Is it poverty or the person himself?

After my shift ended last Friday, I bought two slices of pizza for lunch. I was hungry that time since it’s already past 2pm and I haven’t taken my lunch yet. I wolfed one of those slices while I was walking toward the jeepney bay. I rode the jeep going to Lardizabal. I was seated near the end of the jeep, a few seats away from the main entrance. As the jeepney was about to move, three street children, each carrying a cup of DQ icecream, clung to the entrance of the jeep. Two were girls who were roughly the same age. The boy who seemed to be their little brother held on to them while enjoying his cup of ice cream. They started asking for alms. One of the girls who was wearing a jeje cap pointed at the plastic on my hand that had the pizza slice. 

My initial thought was:  There is no way I’m going to give this slice.

Don’t get me wrong, I usually am pro-poor and humanitarian but on that occasion that slice is my only lunch and I couldn’t afford to have a decent one because I was already running late for another appointment. 

So I held on to the plastic bag.

Then girl started to grasp it. 

I resisted. 

And she grasped it some more until the plastic tore, leaving my hand with the handle of the plastic bag while she clung to the rest of it. Obviously, the people in the jeep were shocked at what happened. I also lost my senses with the force the girl displayed to get her way.  

After some seconds of observing the girl who was still clinging to the end of the jeep like nothing happened, I sarcastically quipped, “Thank you ah..”

Still there was no reaction from her. On the background I can hear my seatmates say, “Pagpasensyahan mo na kuya.” My eyes still fixed to the girl. I couldn’t imagine how at a young age she already seems to calloused. I’ve gotten used to people asking for alms but this was completely different. It’s like being snatched which is by far nothing like charity. I couldn’t imagine how she will be once she grows up. Will poverty still take the best of her?

Or maybe I wasn't charitable enough?