World... Vision?

Last Tuesday evening I was home alone, reading in the living room, when I heard a knock at the door. It was already dark out but I decided to answer the door anyway.
A girl who looked to be about 21 or 22 was standing at the door, holding a clipboard and a pile of photos.

She smiled brightly at me. "Hi, is your mom or dad home?"

I stood gawking in disbelief for a few seconds before replying dumbly, "Ummm, NO."

Without missing a beat, she responded, "Would you mind telling me how old you are?"

Rather speechless, I replied angrily, "Twenty six!"

She laughed. "Oh, I wasn't sure if you were over 16 or under 16, so I just thought I'd guess! Oops, I was wrong!".

She went on to explain that she was going door-to-door representing World Vision, and that she wanted to give me the opportunity to sponsor a child in need. She gave me a pile of photos of children from different countries and as I looked through the pile she gave her pitch.

"Isn't it sooooo cool you can support these cuties? All it takes is a bit of spare change each month and in return you get the MOST awesome letters back from these kids telling you how you've changed their lives!"

"Well", I said, "I can give you some money now... I have some cash in my purse."

"Oh.", she replied, disappointed. "We don't take cash at the door. You have to sign up for pre-authorized monthly payments through your credit card company. I can stand outside while you call your company on the phone and I won't overhear any confidential information! You can do it right now."

Concerned that I was being pressured into something before I knew what I was getting myself into, I responded,

"Well... is there a website or any literature I can read to learn more about World Vision? I'd like to think about it first before I commit to something long-term."

She looked impatient. "Why can't you just sign up right now? It's easy and it's cheap. Just do it! This is an amazing opportunity! It's only a couple bucks every few weeks."

Feeling pretty annoyed myself, I answered defensively, "I am not the only decision-making person in this house. I would rather discuss it with my husband first before I commit to anything financially, and he's not home. Can't you leave any information for me to read over and consider before I sign up for anything?"

Defiant, and definitely angry at this point, she responded, "It's not like he would be MAD at you for signing up for a charity! These children need your help, right this minute! You don't need to discuss it! Seriously, you need to just do this!"

I realized I needed to just let this girl down firmly. "Yes, I do need to discuss it with my husband. And I'm not going to sign up for anything right now. Thank you."

She was distressed at this point. "Can I ask you why? You would be helping children in need!"

"I would really rather think about it. I'm not going to do it right now." ... "Sorry", I added, for good measure.

With that, she turned around abruptly and stomped down the stairs, back down the front walk to the street. No "thank you for your time", or, "here is a brochure explaining World Vision", or even, "Good-bye".

I stood open-mouthed as she marched down the sidewalk without even looking back once.

As I shut the front door, all I could do was shake my head in disbelief.