What If You Were Homeless?
For a few months I volunteered at a day homeless center where folks stayed during the course of the day. At four o'clock they had a snack and then left, each of them to their destinations some unknown. It took me at least a month before the clients warmed up to me, however the experience with the staff was not quite as I expected it and in fact was one where it felt as though they were defensive as if expecting a homeless person to con them out of something or try something they deemed slick. I did not see the same thing that they saw nor did I feel I needed to be concerned. For me, they were not any different from me nor I from them. I felt as though we were equals and that if anything I was the one who needed to be humble and earn their respect and love. Just when I was getting there I realized that my brand of service was simply not one that would be promoted and in fact at times I was asked not to write positive quotes on the paper coffee cups where I served coffee frequently. Today I see it as a good experience and have no judgement about the way others believe it needs to be run or unfold.
I recently met a woman and then a man who were both homeless at one time. I will begin by sharing my experience with the man who worked for Johnny Rockets which is a burger joint where employees are expected to be campy and do a dance at one point in their work day. This man happened to assault the man who killed his daughter and ended up in jail for three years. He then became homeless and at one point heard that a eatery would be opening up close to where he camped out. As luck would have it he applied for work, told his boss the truth and was hired. When I asked him what it meant to work there he cried and stated that he would be grateful for having been given this chance and that it saved his life.
The woman I met shortly after this was a person who was managing a well known bridal shop. At fifteen she announced her sexual orientation coming out as a lesbian woman and her parents promptly threw her out. She lived with one person and another exhausting her welcome and finally ending up homeless and living near the train stations downtown. She heard about a job opening at the bridal shop and promptly applied. She got hired and the rest is history. She is also in deep gratitude for having been hired and is enthusiastic about what she does. It seems to me as if she has a permanent smile on her face.
Both these homeless people are a testinent to the notion that people who are homeless are like any one of us. They too have dreams and hopes and feel passion about life, perhaps a little more than those of us who have never missed a meal or ever had to sleep outside in the cold. We are alike more than we are different and just because we are homeless does not make us less of child of God or less of a miracle than someone who is wealthy. It is likely that we could learn more from a homeless person who has changed their status than from a person with a doctorate.
What if you were homeless? The answer is easy. It would make no difference as long as you held onto your faith and had the vision to see beyond the present moment into your true self. The fact that you are homeless will have nothing to do with who you are or your value as a human being. All we need to understand is that any of us could become homeless and that this may be a part of our journey and a reason to propel us into the life we really wanted.
I recently met a woman and then a man who were both homeless at one time. I will begin by sharing my experience with the man who worked for Johnny Rockets which is a burger joint where employees are expected to be campy and do a dance at one point in their work day. This man happened to assault the man who killed his daughter and ended up in jail for three years. He then became homeless and at one point heard that a eatery would be opening up close to where he camped out. As luck would have it he applied for work, told his boss the truth and was hired. When I asked him what it meant to work there he cried and stated that he would be grateful for having been given this chance and that it saved his life.
The woman I met shortly after this was a person who was managing a well known bridal shop. At fifteen she announced her sexual orientation coming out as a lesbian woman and her parents promptly threw her out. She lived with one person and another exhausting her welcome and finally ending up homeless and living near the train stations downtown. She heard about a job opening at the bridal shop and promptly applied. She got hired and the rest is history. She is also in deep gratitude for having been hired and is enthusiastic about what she does. It seems to me as if she has a permanent smile on her face.
Both these homeless people are a testinent to the notion that people who are homeless are like any one of us. They too have dreams and hopes and feel passion about life, perhaps a little more than those of us who have never missed a meal or ever had to sleep outside in the cold. We are alike more than we are different and just because we are homeless does not make us less of child of God or less of a miracle than someone who is wealthy. It is likely that we could learn more from a homeless person who has changed their status than from a person with a doctorate.
What if you were homeless? The answer is easy. It would make no difference as long as you held onto your faith and had the vision to see beyond the present moment into your true self. The fact that you are homeless will have nothing to do with who you are or your value as a human being. All we need to understand is that any of us could become homeless and that this may be a part of our journey and a reason to propel us into the life we really wanted.
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