Green Leaf Report

  At some major intersections near downtown Houston, it’s a common sight to see people standing on street-corners holding cardboard signs.  Normally the signs have handwritten messages along the lines of “Out of work” or “Homeless” and “Need help.”  I’ve noticed two different panhandlers recently that seemed outside the norm, not because of the messages on their signs, but rather because they looked different: Both were quite obese.  It was jarring; what is the message about our society when our beggars look more well-nourished than most of the planet?  I’m not referring to slightly plump builds, these two people were overweight by possibly a couple of hundred pounds each.

Perhaps it’s a sign of the dramatic and precipitous fall of our economy. Persons that recently had clear access to food are now reaching this level of desperation, where the scorching heat and their own pride are less important than acquiring some form of help.  Or perhaps it’s all a scam, and the person chosen to hold the sign for the day was just a poor marketing choice.

In my mind, I equate it to the messages also coming in my electricity bills, asking for donations to help pay the utility bills of the impoverished. I keep my family sweating, in the humid Gulf Coast summer, trying to live with the seasons.  We were wilted today, the first day of August, at 97 degrees and full sun reflecting back from the poorly planned inner-city pavement.  I don’t want anyone to perish from heat stroke in the extreme heat, but I also don’t want to continue supporting poor consumption practices.  A dilemma.