"Miss, could you help me?"

A frail, slightly shaky voice startled me. I looked up to see an elderly woman with graying hair and pleading eyes standing beside me.

"How can I help you?" I asked politely, unsure of what she needed.

“Oh, I was hoping you could buy me a cup of coffee,” she said, her request catching me off guard. There was something about her tone that stirred a sense of pity in me. “I haven’t had one in so long because I don’t have any ...