Friday, May 1, 2009

Hyde - Jekyll - Hyde

When Doug first arrived at Manna on Main Street, he was angry. He demanded satisfaction. He had been in a serious accident and was in extreme pain. Doug fully expected us to fill his prescription for pain medication. We politely, but firmly explained that we don't do narcotics. If he had other medications for antibiotics, insulin or items of that nature, we might be able to help. Doug was not pleased and stalked away.

A couple of days later Doug was back, only this time a different man. He was apologetic and repeatedly told us how sorry he was for his behavior. Was there some way we could help him with his other medications. Choking back the tears, he thanked us for being willing to give him a second chance. We told him we don't take things personally and we understand how overwhelming life can be.

Doug returned a couple days after that. He had brought in his prescriptions... for his pain medication. We explained to him again that we don't pay for narcotics. We instructed him to go home and bring back the other prescriptions and we would see what they were for, and perhaps we could cover their cost.

After he left, we weren't certain - was he trying to play us, thinking that we were soft, giving him another chance and that we would give in to his demands? Or did he just forget what we had told him a few days earlier? We try not to judge his motives, but just be consistent with whoever comes to us for aid. It can be complicated when the same individual comes in multiple times, acting each time like someone else...

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