It is amusing how the most used excuse for not giving those less fortunate is not carrying cash in your wallet. In times of winter and with snow taking over most of the country, I see freezing men, women and children on almost every street and what is interesting is the fact that we have become immune to humanity. I keep seeing people continuing to walk past freezing children who could very well do with even just a cup of hot chocolate to keep them warm for the night.
I often discuss this issue with my friends and the rising numbers of homeless people in our country, and almost always, the excuse is the switch to paying everything by card. However, a cup of hot chocolate costs 10 Swedish Kronors (Dh 4.45) and you can surely pay that by card, too! Using the lack of cash as an excuse to not give back to your community is not an acceptable one. Just because you have the privilege of walking around in a thick jacket to keep you warm for the day does not mean that you do not have an obligation to help those less fortunate than yourself.
It is not about huge give aways or going out of your way to help others, but just the small gesture to show that you care; and a cup of chocolate is enough to bring a smile on a fellow beings’ face. With the hope of spurring humanity in my fellow country people, I will buy you chocolate!
— The reader is a Swedish student based in Gothenburg, Sweden
