I pulled into the nearest parking lot and grabbed a five pound bag of dog food, a container of water and a twenty-dollar bill from my purse. I approached the ragged-looking man and his unhappy dogs warily. If this man had somehow hurt these creatures or was using them as come-ons, I knew my anger would quickly take over. The older dog was staring up at the sky, whining pitifully. Just before I reached them,a truck pulled up alongside of them and asked how much the man wanted for the older dog.
"Fifty bucks," the man on the corner replied, then added quickly, "but I really don't want to sell him."
"Is he papered?"
"No."
"Is he fixed?"
"No."
"How old is he?"
"Five. But I really don't want to sell him. i just need some money to feed him."
"If I had fifty bucks, I'd buy him." the light turned green, and the truck sped off.
The man shook his head and continued dejectedly pacing the sidewalk.
When he noticed me coming in his direction, he stopped walking and watched me approach. The pup began wagging his tail.
"Hi. " I offered, as I drew nearer. The young man' s face was gentle and friendly, and I could sense just by looking in his eyes that he was someone in real crisis.
"I have some food here for your dogs." I said. Dumbfounded, he took the bag as I set down the water in front of them.
"You brought water, too?" he asked incredulously. We both knelt down next to the older dog, and the puppy greeted me enthusiastically
"That one there is T.C., and this one' s Dog. I' m Wayne." The sad, older dog stopped crying long enough to see what was in the container.
"What happened, Wayne?" I asked. I felt a bit intrusive, but he answered me directly and simply." Well, I just moved out here from Arizona and haven' t been able to find work. I' m at the point where I can' t even feed the dogs."