If someone from your past asked for the favor of your time, would you go?

yes, i’d go.

Yes, if I didn’t have a prior commitment.

Yes I would always do my best to help someone, even if they were from my past.

In general, yes. I like talking to people over cups of coffee.

If it was someone I did not know well, then probably not. That’s a little weird. There are plenty of people from my past that I used to know very well (mostly school chums or old co-workers), but have not had any contact with for 20 or 30 years, even those people coming out of the woodwork would be very weird. I would just be stuck wondering why they chose to talk to me about their problems instead of somebody they know well or a therapist if they are truly having a problem. I can’t imagine myself going to someone that I didn’t know very well to ask advice. It just doesn’t make sense or seem to be the best option.

Did one of your old friends come back to ask for help? Can you give a few details? I may change my mind about this after I hear what the actual situation was.

I do it all the time.

sure, I’d go. At the very least I’d rack up a few karma points! and, as my old school Catholic mother would say, “it’s the Christian thing to do.”

such acts of charity bestow more on the giver than the recipient. Listening to another person is a good way to get out of being focused on yourself.

Of course.

It depends on the person. Some I would, some I would not.

I had this happen to me once. I went, and the bastard tried to sell me Amway.

It’s hard to say definitely yes without knowing more details. if it were a close friend from the past i would probably be inclined to go. I would hope that if this were someone from the past who i was not that close to they would have someone closer to them now that they would rely on. If it were someone like an ex, i might be leery that they are going to try to hit on me. It depends. I am also a cautious person, into my personal safety and also don’t want my time wasted. have you been in touch with them on Facebook or some other way? or was this totally totally out of the blue. i think more details would help me decide.

@GladysMensch ooooh, that is unforgivable. There was an older guy in my fraternity that married one of the house “sweethearts”. They invited a whole bunch of us up to their place near Solvang, California for a party/BBQ weekend. About an hour before we were going to have dinner, their Amway “leader” started in on his pitch. We all left.

@GladysMensch OMG I know! A woman I dated (not too seriously) called me a few weeks after we stopped going out and asked me to meet her for a drink. Turned out she was now selling insurance…

Yes, just for a cup of coffee? I’d go and wish them well.

@jca I hear you about the safety, but waste of time? I think a cup of coffee with someone in trouble promises to be more interesting than TV. And you can always set the DVR before you go. But then again, I’m a writer, always looking for grist for the mill.

I have run into where sad and depressed meant lonely and horny and not a good situation.

@Cruiser Yeah well. I think I’d be flattered.Just having the opportunity to say, “No” would be a novelty.

@6rant6 Not when it’s your good friends wife!

If it’s someone I know, I’ll always lend an ear. I live to lend my ears.

@6rant6 : the reason i said “waste of time” was based upon what others said about being sold Amway or insurance. That’s why I would want to make sure there was really a problem. Not that I wish problems on people, but if someone calls me and makes me feel like there’s a desperate situation, I would not want to be tricked into going to help and finding out they were selling insurance.

@Cruiser Yes, I can see that changes the um… how would you put it… context? It’s a whole new ball game. Or perhaps that’s a bad metaphor.

@jca The good news is, after someone tries to sell you insurance there’s no chance you’ll get morbid some night and think, “I wonder if that might have worked.”

This question reminds me of the panhandlers that approach your vehicle in parking lots and ask for money.

No, i would not go. strangers can be dangerous and could have a criminal motive.

I would go to listen and to help if needs be but I wouldn’t buy insurance.

@6rant6 So are you going?

Yep! sure I would, if they were close & not too far off…......... :-/

was this a hypothetical question or did it really happen?

As long as the person had never been a threat to me or others then yes, I’d go.

It depends on who it is.

I would go, I jump at any chance to help someone out. If I can touch the heart of just one person I’ll know my life was worth while.

Sure, I have no one in my past that I would be afraid of.

Yes, I’d go. Some of the best advice given to me has been from people I wasn’t terribly close to, and I would like to repay that if I could. I would be curious as to why they chose me to talk with.

Absolutely…