Spent some time this week with DD's church family, serving spaghetti, drinks and personal hygiene kits to the homeless. Must admit, that my reasons for going were less than noble - I went to watch over my grandchildren. I have shot photos at this place. It has great graffiti but I must say, I have been very uncomfortable each time I go. Today, I got to learn a little more about my fellow life travelers and myself.
The homeless culture is much like most others. They are more comfortable eating at their own tables, they are mostly introverts. Few took their food to the tables that the church brought. When we came in to set up, you could feel the distrust of us invading their space. I get it. We would be gone in few hours but this is their home. As we came in to set up, we walked past their tables and I heard one older woman tell the others, I just got out of jail - five minutes ago. I just got here!
One of the first people who came in was a couple with a four month old baby. They got some food and some personal care products for the baby. Later on, someone saw her feeding her baby - bread and noodles. She didn't have formula. There was a quick offering taken and someone ran to the store and left the young couple was a couple hundred dollars worth of formula. It won't change their lives forever, but for today, it did.
Gage would ask later in the day, What happened to manners? Most people said thank you, some did not. The pop was a big hit, water not so much. Several asked for beer. One man looked at the water and pop, looked at us and said, Alcohol. I would later see him as we left for home, his head in his lap, in deep distress. As for the personal hygiene kits, most asked for Chapstick and sunscreen. A man asked for a job, anything, he said.
One thing I learned about this culture is if they don't value Something, they don't take it and are quite vocal about it. When you have to carry all your belongings, space becomes an issue. I think about all the things I have dragged home that I didn't need. It makes you think about what do you really need and what do you value?
A few hours after we got there, we were gone. We all went back to our homes and lives and the homeless people, did the same. Did we change each other in any way? Time will tell but maybe the lesson isn't about permanent change. Maybe it was about being in the Moment, sharing what we were able to put together with those whose network was connected on a different level. Funny, both camps started out a bit leery of each other and by the end, we had come to some level of understanding. While what we value may look completely different, how we do everyday life may be more similar that we think, after all - we are all God's children...
