For what it's worth, there are a lot of people out there, including some of your friends and family members who are having a hard time these days. Few, if any, are panhandling, but many to most of them are in pretty serious trouble. Mortgage or rent may be past due, heat and water may be in danger of being shut off, kids may not have clothes, and food may be in short supply.

The thing is, you probably know about this already. Give a call, stop by for a couple of minutes. Don't give a handout, but maybe you've got something in the garage that would be useful, or maybe you can watch the kids after school and save the cost of childcare, Maybe you can give a ride, or run an errand, and maybe you know someone that needs some part time help, a couple days a week.

And maybe none of this will change things much, but it could help, and it could show somebody that, even when they're down on their luck, you still care about them.