Please Try Again

We've been getting a string of wrong numbers lately and it's heartbreaking.

The calls are eerily similar: a polite and very direct, female voice on the other end of the phone says hello and immediately tells me how many children she has and that they need a place to stay.   Apparently, our number is being given out by some agency or other for housing or sheltering services.

I try to break in as quickly as I can to let them know they have the wrong number.   I find myself wishing I could be the help they're looking for, though. There is something so immediate and human in this simple, specific call for help. 

All I can think about are circumstances that must have led up to that call, the courage it took to pick up that phone.

I don't have any way to help them right now (I'm trying to track down the number they should have been given) but my reaction has given me a bit of insight.  The next time I need help from someone, maybe I'll be a little less reticent to ask for it.