It's Christmas Time (click the link to hear the song).

As I walked amongst the holiday shoppers and city workers in the center of a Canadian city, a distress cry arose.

It took me a moment to locate where the wounded call came from and as people moved aside, the man appeared. He was bedraggled and his sorrowful cries expressed anguish and pain. Food he said, FOOD read his sign. His hand was extended and in it was a dime - 10 cents.

I approached this distraught man who was crouched against the shiny black slate of a bank tower to ask, "What kind of food do you want?". "HUMAN FOOD, I want human food", he said as he rocked himself back and forth. I wondered if the rocking was to stay warm or maybe too calm the troubles inside of him. I asked if he needed help, food was his response.

I went to the street vendor and ordered a hotdog and iced tea. The hotdog was grilled to perfection and placed in a toasted bun.   Onions the vendor asked, I declined. The vendor had skillfully avoided touching the food, concerned he might violate a city bylaw or health regulation. He dried the water off the soda can, wrapped it in a napkin and wished me a Merry Christmas. As a courtesy I replied the same.

I returned to the troubled man who was in the same corner, now holding two dimes in his outstretched palm. I offered the hotdog and soda to him. He jumped from his crouched position like an animal released by its capture, and in turn I also jumped. "I'm not crazy", he cried out - "I'm not crazy - people just walk by me and they say God bless me, God bless me I cry, God bless you who walk by or drop a coin - I'm not crazy please don't be afraid". I admitted to him that I was afraid but I knew he was also scared.

I offered the hotdog and soda a second time. He took the soda, removed the napkin, put the soda into his bag and the napkin in his pocket. He picked up his bag continuing to express his anguish about people walking by. He accepted the hot dog with the words God Bless you.

So this is Christmas and what does it mean - faith, hope, love and joy. Do they know it's christmas time (listen to the song) - do the hungry beggars or the lost souls around us do they know and feel the season of faith, love, joy and hope when we walk by, pretend we don't see what is, or toss a coin?

Pan handling has become a way to earn a living for some and as the number of persons asking for a handout increases we can become desensitized to the plight of the hungry and hurting. Should we turn off our human capacity to love, to share joy and be hopeful because too many are asking or because we are uncomfortable or find it disconcerting? Is it okay to be more concerned with the preparation of a hot dog for a customer rather than a frightened neighbour on the corner?

In the shadow of busy lives and attention to personal needs the essence of the season can be lost or given only to those we know and care about.  Say a prayer for those you know and those you don't - share the gift of love - its a gift that keeps on giving.