Little Stories Tell Bigger Stories

I woke up the other day being hit with local, national and international news stories that seemingly had great importance - a refugee and immigration crisis, presidential candidates insulting each other, themselves and the electorate, a Kentucky clerk refusing to do her job, people being arrested for blockading gates on Seneca Lake, a company refuting claims of a fire at their facility after smoke drifted for miles up the same lake. Lots to digest. Lots to think about.

But then, there it was. The report of a woman caught on surveillance tape stealing cans from a local recycling center. Police, the courts, the whole nine yards were involved in this event and capture. Obviously the local business can't have people taking items that they are collecting and processing but there is a bigger story in this little story on the police blotter. What kind of world and economy are we living in where people are even thinking about risking arrest for cans worth a nickel a piece? What kind of life is led by a person or family that supplements their income with money from recycled cans? What are we as a society offering when we see it happening? Is there an attempt to even find out what the bigger issue might be?

And then there's this. There are people in just about every community who go around, looking through trash cans, pulling out recyclables from municipal or private garbage. To some, including municipal authorities and police, they provide a service and have become fixtures in the street, accepted and protected. To others they are symbols of invaders and a part of society that are looked down upon. Some people even fight, yell and scream at these folks because they're making a mess of their trash, an interesting dilemma. But these trash pickers, panhandlers, collectors are just figuring out another way to survive and get the things they need or think they need. It could be anything. The things we may not approve of are always on the list - alcohol, cigarettes, drugs, lottery tickets, etc. But then there are other things - food, clothing, rent, the ability to go to a movie, etc. And in some cases it's done for the sheer joy and accomplishment of collecting.

As usual I don't have many answers but I do think this little story about an incident on our streets tells a bigger story that should make us think about what issues are facing others and what we can do to assist or accept.