What people would do for money

[Yervant1]

I have never given money to beggars and never will period. If they give me the look, I say to them, get a job like everybody else!

[Arpa]

As a rule I don’t encourage beggars either.

Note below the word “ԽԱՂ” **

“– Ա՜խ» չէ՛, ես գիտեմ, ես բախտ չի ունեմ.

Ես երբե՜ք, երբե՜ք բախտ չեմ ունեցել...

Ես միշտ էլ էսպես անբախտ կըլինեմ.

Մանուկ օրից են դեո ինձ անիծել...

Ասում են՝ մի օր, ես օրորոցում,

Մի պաոաւ դարւիշ մեր դուռն է գալի,

Իր խաղն ասում է ու բաժին ուզում,

Իմ նանը նըրան բաժին չի տալի.

– Կորի՛, ասում է, կորի՛ մեր դըոնից,

Երեխաս ճաքեց, հեոացի՚ր, գընա՛...

Ու դարւիշն Էնտեղ անիծում է ինձ,

Թե՝ դըրա օրը լացով անց կենա…”

** At times we call poems and songs/ditties as “խաղ/ տաղ”.

On my first visit to Yerevan, our first “greeter” at the airport was this young man who pretended(?) to have cerebral palsy, he was so insistence, did not take NO for an answer.

They came in all shapes and forms.

On the hotel sidewalk there was this middle aged woman who would latch herself to the “rich American tourists”, she also would not take NO for an answer, until Astghik told me that she was camera shy. Sure enough. Sooner than I could raise the camera to my face she ran so fast she could have won the Marathon.

 

An then of course there are the Մեծապատիւ Մուրացկնաներ/Honoroable Beggars.

Hi Baronian! My name is not Abisoghom Agha.

One sunny day, this well dressed, well groomed man invited himself to my table. Apparently looking for a rich bible toting stupid diasporan. He introduced himself as a writer historian. Opened his briefcase, pulled out a manuscript and began to read. He, not being an allergist did not sense my particular allergy.

“WE, Armenians are am ancient nation. We are descendants of Noah, Abraham, Moses and David”…

WHOAH!!!!. STOP!!! STOP!!! Why do you take us diasporans for ignorant idiots?

I asked him if he was an Armenian or an Armenian jew?

I asked him to move on. He would not, pulling out more papers. What was he going to tell me ? That we taught the world Christianity, that the Egyptian Hyksos were descendants of Hyke?

The café manager noticed my discomfort, he came over and asked the man to move on.

HONOROBALE BEGGARS INDEED!!!!

Edited April 18, 2012 by Arpa

[Nané]

As I was reading the replies on the topic of begging I remembered something I read recently in Paulo Coelho's most recent novel ("Aleph)" In the book Paulo's translator, Yao, suggests that Paulo beg for money with him (as part of his self-finding journey). He explains, “Some Zen Buddhist monks in Japan told me about takuhatsu, the begging pilgrimage. . . . This is because, according to Zen philosophy, the giver, the beggar, and the alms money itself all form part of an important chain of equilibrium. The person doing the begging does so because he’s needy, but the person doing the giving also does so out of need. The alms money serves as a link between those two needs.”

 

I think on some level this is absolutely true.

[Azat]

i often give money even many times knowing its going to be spent on a beer or even worse drugs.

 

saying get a job is not cool. I was unemployed at one point in my life for over a year and while i was being very selective of my opportunities and I had a consulting gig here and there I know how hard the market can be

[Yervant1]

I bet you did not go begging?

Every person should think about rainy days and save some of their income. There is always a job out there, even if it's a minimum wage would still be better than begging.

By giving money to these people will only prolong their misery as it's not a solution for their situation.