Cut and Run

At what point should someone give up on a person? Is there a magic number of "strikes" which are impossible to complete unless there will never be improvement? For me, the magic point is when I can no longer give someone the benefit of the doubt. In essence, after being disappointed so many times, I just can't have the faith in them that I wish I could. That, for me, is the breaking point.
But to give up, to truly surrender is more than loosing faith in one person. In a way, to give up on someone is to loose faith in your ability to fix it. Whatever was going on, giving up is acknowledgement that you did not have the power to solve the problem. It is a personal defeat. That hurts and it hurts in a very intimate way.
It is for this reason, I believe people are inclined to give 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 29th chances. Benevolence, Forgiveness and Charity are real and legitimate virtues but tonight I can't help but wonder if they all might be tied to our own personal battle against feeling helpless. The fight to ignore that despite our best efforts, some people simply will not or can not change.