I don't know him but I am thinking about him

New York City is a great place. It has everything you can imagen and busy as a bee hive. It has every race you can imagen, the diversity is astounding and the way it keeps on going day or night is pretty cool, well that is unless you live near a big neon sign that keeps blinking through your window.

The city has so much to offer when it comes to land marks. You could go to any place and eat any type of food. If you want entertainment it's the place to be, you can catch a comedy show, a play, go to a museum, an art gallery, a charity event, you could pretty much find anything you want and like.

It really is a great place but if you look at all the happy faces walking around, shopping and having a good time you will still be able to find faces of hopelessness. Faces of despair and sadness. You will find humans starving and sleeping in the hard, cold floor who have lost every glimpse of hope in what life has to offer.

You will find children, teens, adults and elderly people who have no place to call home, who have anything to eat, clean clothes, basic necessities to survive. Things we all at one time or another take for granted. Things we see as normal or even unimportant but would mean the world to one of the people who have to day in and day out deal live with or I guess live with out because of so many reasons. To top it off, there are people who have set in their minds that many of the people who are in this situation asked for it. Who think that with just a snap of a finger the homeless can just get out of their situation just like that and have little or no sympathy for those who are wondering in the streets.

Mental illness isn't even a consideration any more. Loss of a job and addiction to substances that rot your mind are seen as oh well too bad they asked for it, compassion is just not there any more. The lack of understanding that it can truly happen to anyone is seen as a myth or something that is only in the past but with the economy not looking any better is it really that impossible to envision that it CAN happen to anyone? I don't believe so.

As I was having a good time and looking at things I could never afford in store windows like Louis Vuitton and so on I noticed a pile of clothes on the floor next to a building. A building that had pretty windows with pictures of animals and jewelry, and where the pile of clothes were I saw a heating vent. It was 20 something degrees and I had on plenty of clothes, gloves and warm shoes and I was cold! As I kept walking I noticed that it wasn't just a pile of clothes that someone had dropped but it was someones living space. A person laying on the ground, in freezing weather trying to keep warm next to the building's heating vent and then it happened my heart sank.

I was complaining about a stupid blister and here is a person who doesn't even have a home, a bed, a pillow, something warm to eat or drink, if this person got hurt no one to help them, no money to buy medicine, nothing. I didn't have much at the time, but I felt I had to do something. So I began to walk to find a place that had food and then it got worst, I walked by a church on the same street and there were 10 more people, putting cardboard up, huddling together to stay warm, laying on the steps of the church, if I felt sad with just one person imagen how I felt when I saw a a group.

My husband looked at me like I was insane, I think cause he knew that I HAD to do something, I didn't know what but something.

I saw a cop car and I asked the police men about shelters and they said that "the shelters were absolutely full". I then asked if they were going to tell the people to move? and they said "no" that they were "safe" there because it's a church and the law protects them, but that there are people who want to change that law and the officer strongly disagrees with them wanting to change it. I too agree with the officer.

I then asked the officer of there was a place to get coffee or tea or soemthing and he told me about a bakery around the area, but looked at me like I just asked if he could get me the moon. I said "thank you" and asked my husband to follow me. He too looked at me like I was insane.

Once we got to the bakery I asked for a lot of hot teas, the clerk joking asked "are they all for you?" and I responded no. He then asked me "who they were for?" and I told him "it's for the people at the church" at that point the clerk made the crucifix sign and said "oh I have to start going to church" I smiled and he asked "do you go to church often?" at that point I told him "I don't go to church at all, I don't believe in God" his eyes got so wide and then he asked me "well what do you believe then? and wait if it's not for the people in the church, who is this for? are you getting this for the homeless people that sleep there?" I answered "I believe in the kindness of those who have good hearts and yes it is for the homeless people in the street" the clerk began to laugh. He laughed and I asked him "why are you laughing?" he then composed himself and said "I have never had anyone come here and buy things for those people, and you don't even believe in God and I just, it's just funny" I smiled and he then said "I guess maybe if more people believed in what you do this world would be a better place, maybe I should start believing in what you believe too".

After all paid and done off we went. When we were approaching the church I noticed a big bus, the words homelessbus.org, I beleive, were printed on the side. I saw some of the homeless go to the bus and I though maybe they were going to be picked up to be taken to a shelter but the bus was delivering food. I asked a young man if he was with the organization and he said no and this other man said "I am" I explained that I didn't have much but I got some hot tea for all. At that point the man shook my hand and asked me if I wanted to give them out with him but I declined, I knew that if I did I would no longer be able to hold back my tears. He thanked me a few times and I mentioned that there was a person not at the church steps but on the side of a building and he said he would go get him.

We shook hands once more and off we went. Before we left I did have pass the area where the one man was sleeping and took a picture, this will stay with me for a very long time and I hope he was able to get some warmth and something to eat.

I wish I could of done more, I wish poverty did not exist. I wish so many things but wishing is not a realistic thing to do, but actual action is. I know I won't be able to help everyone in the world, I am only human you know but perhaps some day I will be able to do much more for my fellow human.

I hope you are well mister. I hope all of you in the streets are well. I will have you in my heart for as long as I live.




Love,
Lola