no solicitar por favor

maybe i should make a shirt saying "do not solicit this person". or "no soliciting allowed"

more than a month ago, while having lunch with a friend, some stranger handed us envelopes soliciting for some small change to help support their choir. i initially wanted to ignore it, saying to my friend that im a frequent victim of solicitations but my friend wanted to give some small amount. so i pitched in telling the person who gave the envelope that im going to check if they really are a legit choir.

for some reason, people who solicit aid for some small church or musical group or just about any cause or reason always try to go to me. there's a lot of them in trinoma and i thought maybe they choose me because im often alone. but last month, in the cemetery, while i was with my relatives, i was the one who was approached first by this kind of solicitors. my cousin joked that i looked like i have some money to spare. seriously? im currently struggling where to find funds for my medical expenses (i dont know what i did wrong last monday but come monday night, i was feeling the pain again. i thought my condition was improving and i was hoping i wouldnt need to undergo two expensive medical procedures. i wont let my 13th month pay go to some shitty medical expenses). i dont even have any money for medical concerns of my family.

but then again, with the kind of lifestyle i have, maybe people do get the impression i have money to spare. back in law school, my friend asked how much my allowance was. after i answered, he said i must have saved a lot. i replied, well, not really. i spend a lot on food. whatever small amount i saved, i use for stuff i like. im not good with money unless necessity arises (like the bar exams. i successfully managed my expenses to make my savings last for months until the end of the bar exams). the only money i have that i dont touch is my emergency savings. any money not part of that can be spent (and wasted) on anything. until now, food takes a big chunk out of my salary.

ok, maybe im not addressing the solicitation thing properly. i mean, all they're asking is small change. surely their needs are much more serious compared to mine since the reason they are soliciting is because they arent well off or capable of earning enough. well, i see that but the question that always comes to mind is, "are they legit?" are they seriously soliciting on behalf of some church, choir or did they really lose their homes to a fire, calamity, etc? like i said to my friend, local government units or agencies can address those concerns. some NGO could provide assistance. surely there's someone or something that exists meant to address their financial concerns or problems (they can go to their congressperson or some generous senator). the only soliciting entity i recognize are the ones posted by the Philippine Red Cross at the MRT counters. i always give my change to those people because they're legit (they have to be). any other random stranger that solicits aid should provide some proof other than some envelope or letter. i dont want my small change going to some fraudulent cause.