Disillusioned

Today, I saw a young girl (maybe mid-twenties?) sitting on the side of the road with her dog. She was holding a sign that said "we need a miracle.. and some H20!" It was sweltering hot, and we decided to bring her and the dog some water, some dog food and some apples and an unopened box of cereal. I asked her if she had a place to sleep and what had gotten her into this situation, and would they be ok? She said she had been living off the streets for the past 3 months, and that she just now was living in a week-to-week motel and trying to get a job as a sign holder for a furniture store. As we were standing there, after we'd given her the food and water, a cell phone rang. It wasn't mine or my husband's, it was hers. She quickly reached into her bag and shut it off, and thanked us profusely for the food and water. As she did so, I noticed bruising on the inside of her arm, where the elbow bends. I thought to myself that I shouldn't make any assumptions, and that at least maybe she and the dog would be able to eat, and went on my way..

This particular intersection that they were standing at is one that I pass frequently, as it is one of the main ways to get to our house. As we passed by later in the day, she and her sign and the dog were long gone, but there lay the unopened cereal box, the dog food, and the apples, on the side of the road.