Little do-gooders

The doorbell rang at 4 pm, when it was just about getting dusky. I'm a little wary about opening doors to total strangers in a new country, but this time I saw two little blonde girls, all giggly but buzzing with energy. "Hiya there...we were just wondering if you would like to make a contribution to our pound...you see, my mom works in this dog house, and we have about 100 dogs there, all caged and we are doing a dance and raising money and would u blah blah blah..."

"Hey, wait a minute, would you guys go a bit slow?" I ask a bit sheepishly. "Sure. We are raising money for dogs. They are in a pound home where my mom works, and these dogs are all caged in and you can see their ribs. I got one home and I am keeping him home till he gets better, but you see there are so many other dogs like it. We need to raise 10 pounds per dog. Would you like to contribute? Oh by the way, I'm Lacey and this is my friend Dorris," she says, pearly whites showing.

I really want to say yes to them but I hesitate remembering that the only money I have is a 20-pounder. "I'd love to help you girls, but I don't have change right now. Would you'll be able to come back tomorrow?" I ask. Lacey smiles now, and she says, "that's perfectly awrite, coz' we have change." I suddenly feel rather dumb but manage to brush that aside and ask them to wait, as I run upstairs to get some cash. Fortunately, I find some coins in my bag, and I run back with 4 pounds. "I have 4 pounds in change, would that be okay?" I ask. "That's puurfect. We have a dance for you. We're doing this for everyone who contributes. C'mon Dorris, take out your cell phone." Before I knew it, cell phones start blaring Solja boy (btw, that seems to be the hip-hop anthem of the youngsters in the UK now!) and the two girls are performing a neat little choreography. "You girls are doing a great job. How old are you?" I ask.

"I'm 10 and she's 11. I love dogs you know, coz' I've had like loads of them until now. My mom loves them too, that's why she's helping out at the pound. Do you have a dog?" "I had one," I respond, swallowing. As if reading my mind, she tells me, "You can join the pound if you want to. They pay you 5 pounds an hour, and you can earn upto 350 pounds a month! And you get to help all these dogs, they are just wonderful, you really ought to see them" I will, I tell her. She hands me a chart and a pen to put in my name and address. "We'll send you an invite to our dance show," she grins. "I'd like that," I tell her. Lacey and Dorris take the chart back, briefly survey the neighbourhood for other dog-lovers, deliberating on which doorstep to land on next. "Wowwwie...we have 8 pounds already," squeals Dorris. I wish them good luck, and tell them to keep up their good work. They smile back. I'm left wondering when was the last time I did something about a cause that I was passionate about.

I don't have an answer.