What I have laying so heavy on me today is this...why won't churches do more to help their community. I am angry and I will be angry for an unknown amount of time. I can't keep it to myself or I feel like I'm going to explode. But, I have asked several "friends" of mine to ask their churches to help me raise the money for Jameys headstone. They can raise money for a trip to Disneyworld or for the pastor a new car or a vacation trip for the congregation because it's exhausting being a christian. My own church has helped with the cost of his hospital bill. The Alabama Organ Center that handled Jameys organ donation and they took care of the surgery costs. But Jameys permanent bed still has no marker other than the little green plaque the funeral hope set up so they would know where to lay him.

I do not mean any kind of disrespect toward church or its members. I am just wondering why they don't do more. I've seen people who were obviously on their way to church turn their noses up at a man who looked so much in need that it was shameful. As an example, I was in line behind the man and the couple. He was short by a small amount of change and the cashier wouldn't let him have whatever it was he was trying to buy. It wasn't beer or cigarettes. I do recall that it was a food item. I heard the couple behind him making a rude remark. Now, they were well dressed, nails done, shoes shiny. The poor guy looked just that, poor. But he did not have the look of an alcoholic or a drug user. He was wearing what looked like work clothes and over used work boots. I have seen plenty of drug abusers and full blown alcoholics that I think I'm a pretty good judge of the types. This man went outside and I saw him hang his head, like he was completely defeated. The couple pays for their stuff and leave, in a really nice car. I payed for my stuff and his. I had the cashier put it in a bag to which I added some cash for him. I handed him the bag on my way out. I just handed it to him and kept walking. I think about that man and the couple off and on. The representation of humanity in those 3 people has made me even more aware of how NOT to treat our fellow human beings. Later, my hope for us was renewed when my husband and I were at a drive-through restaurant. When we got to the window, the cashier there told us we owed $5. She explained that the person in front of us had paid over on their check and gave the extra to the car behind them. So, we did the same. We payed the full price for ours and gave the extra to the car behind us. Just imagine if that happened all the time. What is a couple of extra dollars anyway?

If all the people in all the churches would give just one dollar every time the doors opened and they shared that piggy bank with the people of their communities, I believe you wouldn't see another poor man who can't afford to feed himself. And I, like so many other parents, could pay for a headstone.