I woke up at 7am, stood in the rain and smiled at strangers for 5 hours in return for this...

This morning, I, together with hundreds of other volunteers, helped this organisation raise funds by selling flags (for those who have not lived in HK, a flag is a sticker which is given to you when you make a small donation). The last time I sold flags was when I was 15 years old, so this time I was quite nervous. I was not sure if I would be thick-thinned enough to approach people and ask them for money, and how I would react if I was brutally rejected by people.

It turned out that I didn't do too badly. I sold quite a lot of flags and my money bag was so heavy that my arms are hurting now.

I am not going to bore you with the details of my morning (how it was raining most of the time so that people were more reluctant to stop and reach for their wallets; how some people, upon seeing me from a mile, took a complete detour just to avoid me; how some people looked at me like I was the dirtiest filth; how some people lied their way out of making a donation ("oh I don't have any money" when they were carrying various shopping bags); how heart-warming it was when some people said the kindest words of encouragement to me; how touched I was when the least-unexpected people approached me and made a donation). I will just say:

- there are many kind-hearted people, and there are also many nasty people
- however badly those nasty people treat me, and however much I wanted to tell them "you will rot in hell!", I should refrain from doing so because I shall not judge people. This right is reserved for the Almighty (when Jesus was ill-treated by his opponents he did not curse them...well I was just human)
- when I meet the kind-hearted people, I should be thankful and treasure those brief encounters, because they are the ones who make this world a better place
- as much as I love sleeping in on a Saturday morning, I was glad that I was part of the event today. Helping people and feeling great about it is more powerful than any big breakfast I can have.

"I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine you did for me." -- Matthew 25:40