For some people, unemployment, poverty and homelessness have led them to a life of begging on the streets. The reporter on the Campbell Live piece Auckland beggars: "Don't judge us" counted 19 such people on Queen Street. Their tales of hard luck and deprivation made for heartbreaking viewing. There was a former truck driver, a musician and his dog, a group of young people, a newcomer who had received just $8 in a week, a man who sleeps under a bridge - and a refugee from the Christchurch earthquakes who himself was trying to support street-kids.
It was confronting to realise that these people lived rough mere kilometres from where I sat warm and comfortable at home. Seeing the sheer gratitude of these people for any money given was an eye-opener for me. One man, who was so pleased to receive $5 from a passerby, said: "Some people are ashamed and some people walk by quickly and yet some people are so kind and generous."
I'd always been the person who hurried on by. I'd never known the best response when faced with needy people on the street. While sympathetic to their plight, the awkwardness of the situation had always prevented me from showing any generosity. It was the lack of an approved script for the interaction that defeated me. I was always surprised to see someone begging and - being both unprepared and uncertain how to behave - would pretend to not see them.
As luck would have it, I was on Queen Street the day after the Campbell piece aired. I even saw one of the people who had featured. I wanted to give money but it was sheer logistics that got in the way. What was I supposed to do? Stop, rifle through my handbag, find my wallet and look for cash while juggling sunglasses, car-keys and iPhone? It seemed bad manners and socially awkward to blatantly show off the evidence of my conspicuous consumption in front of someone in such dire straits.
So I hurried on to my dentist appointment, vowing to be prepared next time I ventured down Queen Street. Just one week later I was making my way back to have a ceramic cap fitted and an old filling replaced. This time I was ready to deal gracefully with Auckland's homeless people. I knew where this man based himself and I planned to take a slight detour in order to give him some money.