Diamond in the rough OR Undercover Artist

A girl stopped me tonight on the sidewalk and asked me if I had the time. I pulled out my phone and told her what time it was. Two steps later a ragged old man said to me "Next time it'll be safer to not give the time." He was probably right. It was generous of him to offer his advice. I just kept thinking "Not give someone the time of day? It seems so rude." 

Later tonight I was talking with one of the Park cops. He is an artist. He told me that he likes to write music, stories, graphic design, all different types of art. He shared about his passions for 30 minutes as we stood in the park. I wondered how safe everyone else in the park was because he was clearly only paying attention to our conversation but alas, I knew I was protected. Our friendship could also earn me protection in the future. He said that he's an artist by day and cop by night. He introduced himself as "Diamond" and shared about his goals and his plan to achieve them. I stood there listening and thinking "I'm glad I gave him the time of day, he really seems like he needed someone to listen."