An uneasy feeling. Back pocket starts squealing. Wallet's revealing some ringgits for dealing.
Some gracious accepting. Lives intersecting. Good deeds compiling. God must be smiling.
[2011]
THE BACKSTORY ~ Posted on the 10th Anniversary of Geographically Yours, 4 August 2020: When I saw this
transaction unfolding on the streets of Kuala Lumpur, I had to get to my camera
fast. I knew something was taking place that everyone should see. I had to
document it. Snap, snap, snap: Done. This is the way “almsgiving” works in a
Muslim society. People take care of those who can’t easily take care of
themselves, even if they are strangers. Just don’t call it charity! It is
nothing “over and above”; it is the least that God expects. Here were a few
seconds of performance art that made tangible one of the pillars of Islam. It
reminded me so much of my studies and travels in the Arab World, where I met
some of the kindest and most hospitable people anywhere. I am so glad I was
quick on the draw with my point-and-shoot (so much more responsive than those
old 35mm varieties I used to strap around my neck). After I returned home, I
found the images here to be among my favorite mementoes. I liked the scene so
much I wrote the poem above. D.J.Z.
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