Lisa drove her Mercedes recklessly through the streets of the city, cursing furiously into her cellphone.  "200 hours of community service working with the poor!!  I don't have time for this.  That bastard of a judge hated me and wanted to see me suffer!   OOH!!  I could just scream.  How am I supposed to fit this in when I have things to do?   Brunch, and tennis and going to the spa and the country club take up most of my time and the rest of the time I spend keeping my wardrobe up to date with the current fashions! Where am I going to find 200 hours???"

"I know it totally sucks girlfriend  I mean, he has no idea how hard it is for us to keep up with our hectic schedules!   I think you should talk to your lawyer and tell him its cruel and unusual punishment!  I mean seriously???  200 hours??   What the fuck eh?"

"I know right??  But when I told my asshole lawyer I couldn't do it, he looked at me like I was a child and said I should be grateful that's all I got!!   That I should be thanking him for avoiding jail time!!  Thanking him!!!   I hired him to get me off, not get me doing....this....whatever the hell it is..."  She slammed on her brakes narrowly missing the car in front of her.   

The person in the car next to her rolled down his window and yelled "Hang up and drive, bitch!!  Can't you see there's a Baby On Board that car???" 

Lisa thought of telling him exactly what she thought of babies, but the light changed and she sped off, veering around the car in front, which had NO baby on board despite the sign. 

"I don't even know where I'm going, Nicky!   I've never been in this area of the city before!  It's not fair!  All I did was accidentally walk out of the store with a pair of shoes on!  I forgot they weren't mine, you know how confusing it can get when you are trying on so many pairs...all of them so darling!!!   And I totally forgot about the pair I tucked in my bag because I couldn't decide on them...and they treat me like I murdered someone!!" 

"I know,  sweetie, it's not fair at all.   It's so hard being rich these days, everyone wants to punish us for it.  Ugh...I have to go, my investment guy is here.   Hang in there girlfriend, we'll chat later"  and she was gone.

Lisa's GPS told her to turn left in 200m but Lisa was sure that was wrong.   That would take her into a really bad part of town.   But she checked the street and it was the right one.   All lined crowded on both sides with old homes, some with boarded up windows, some with no windows at all, and so close together.    There were people sitting doorways who gawked shamelessly at her as she drove by.  "What you've never seen a car before?" she muttered to herself, glaring at them.

"Your destination is on the left."  

Lisa pulled over to the curb.  "OH MY GOD"   Her destination was a huge old school building.  It had been made into a Resource Centre for this neighbourhood and this was where Lisa would be doing her community service.   "I can't go in there" she cried, her stomach turning over sickly.   But then she remembered her lawyer's words.   "It's either that, or jail babe, and there is no spa in jail!"  

She slowly walked up the stairs and into the building.   The smell of baking greeted her when she went through the door.   It smelled wonderful!   Lisa's mouth watered; she hadn't had breakfast because she's gained a pound the day before.   What she wouldn't give for a bite of whatever smelled so delicious.  Lisa walked over to the reception desk and introduced herself.

The girl at the desk looked at Lisa's designer outfit and Lisa was sure she saw a smirk on her face.  She wanted to say something but decided against it.  She knew the girl was probably just jealous.  It happened all the time. 

Lisa followed the girl down the hall to the "Clothing Room".   She was introduced to April, the volunteer in charge.   April was plump and energetic and had a big warm smile.   She was dressed in blue jeans and an old t-shirt and comfortable running shoes.   When she saw Lisa's outfit she frowned.   "Oh...I guess they didn't tell you ...this is a bit of a dirty job and ...it's very physical...you might be a bit uncomfortable.  Maybe you can take something from the racks to change into..."

"I don't think so!"  Lisa looked around, wrinkling her nose.  Everything was well organized but Lisa could tell the clothing was not new, and certainly not from the places she would shop.   And did that woman just say it was a dirty job?   And physical?   It was just clothing!! 

"Alright then, come and I will show you the sorting area and get you started".   April led Lisa behind a partition to an area with long tables set up.   

 "This is where you will do the sorting and clothes go on the racks here" she indicated clothing racks behind the tables.     "And this....."  she said showing April a large, dark room off to the side "is all of the clothes we have to sort.  These are donations brought in by people..." 

Lisa was shocked and appalled...the room was floor to ceiling with garbage bags!!   She was going to have to empty garbage bags!! 

"Go ahead and grab one of those and bring it over to a table and I will give you a bit of the history of this place"  April said, ignoring the distressed look on Lisa's face.

 Lisa could have cared less about the history of the place, she wanted to run screaming from the room and never come back.   She had never been in such a ...sordid...situation. 

"Isn't there something else I can do?"  she asked, in her best wheedling tone.  "I just had my nails done and...well...I don't want to break one on these....bags". 

  

April just stared at her.   And then she looked at her watch.  And then she stared at her again.  Lisa gave an exasperated sigh and grabbed a bag gingerly protecting her manicure.

She put the bag on the table and as per April's instructions, dumped it out.   The woman had told her never to reach into a bag because you never knew what was in it.    Sometimes there were needles, sometimes, garbage, but most of the time, the stuff they got was good.   This was getting worse and worse Lisa thought as she looked at the pile of clothing while April explained to her the type of people that would be coming there to shop. 

"This is a very, very economically disadvantaged neighbourhood and we offer free clothing to people in need.   They have a point system and we keep track of what they take...we had to do this because some people will take piles and piles of clothes at once.   These people have nothing.   Some don't even have washer's and dryer's.."  

Lisa had heard enough.     She tuned April out and thought of the hot bath she would be soaking in a few hours from now.   It was her happy place.  

An hour later Lisa was exhausted.   She had removed her spiked heels and was working in her stockinged feet.   Her manicure was ruined.   Her hands were dirty and she was hot and sweaty.   She had been sorting and hanging non-stop.   It was nothing like her work out at the gym.   There was no pausing to sip water and flirt with her trainer.   She had never worked so hard.   But what surprised Lisa the most was that she felt a change in her after a while.   It was unfamiliar feeling, one that she wasn't so comfortable with.   And one that she would never admit to any of her friends.   But she discovered she was actually enjoying herself.   She saw the people who came in to shop, people she had no idea lived in her city.  People of all shapes and sizes, people who were raggedy and dirty, and people who were clean and well groomed but had a world-weary demeanor. People who were new to the country, families coming in needing everything that Lisa just took for granted.  One little boy kept bring her empty hangers from the main area, and the shy smile on his face melted Lisa's heart.  He was so proud to be helpful.

  April chatted happily beside her explaining the criteria for clothes they kept and clothes they discarded.   "If you won't wear it, why should they have to?"  she asked

 "Well they're poor...they should be grateful shouldn't they, they are getting all of this for free...I have to go out and buy my clothes...you know they say beggars can't be choosers." 

 Again with the stare from April.   "Everyone of us is an illness, a job loss, or a divorce away from being in this very situation,"  she said.  "Most of these people are new to the country and have had to leave their homeland fearing for their lives.   The least we can do is give them some dignity when it comes to providing clothes for them".   April was gentle, but earnest.

 Lisa had never thought of it that way.   Her husband made good money...but what if he lost his job. It really made her think.   And while she didn't interact with any of the customers, she watched them.  She saw gratitude, embarrassment, and shame on the faces.  Of course, there were a few that were demanding and greedy, but most of them just wanted clothes for themselves and their families.   A basic need.  

At the end of her two-hour shift, Lisa could barely walk.   She crept out of the building and went to her car.   She had been so scared it would be vandalized when she got back to it.  But she had been wrong about that too.   As she drove home, Lisa thought about the morning she had had and the people she had helped and it made her feel good.    She wouldn't go as far as saying she was looking forward to her next shift, but she did have a new perspective and a better understanding of how truly lucky she was to have the life she had.