You drive down the streets of your town and see them. You know they are there, standing, sometimes sitting, just waiting for you to even give them a slight glance. Sometimes you do, even if you aren't trying to. And when you do make eye contact, you immediately look away as if you're ashamed to acknowledge them. They may smile or wave to you. Yet, you think this is a sad, pathetic cry for money... when in reality, they just want to be seen.
Do you know who I'm talking about?
If you haven't guessed it, I'm referring to the homeless person who you are trying to disregard for maybe a solid 2 minutes before you drive off or walk away.
As someone who has been in a situation where your only option to survive is to ask for help, stop treating the homeless population like they are dirt. You don't know their intentions, backgrounds, or who they truly are. So, stop judging them as if you are better than them. Anyone can be put in their situation, in a blink of an eye. To have lost everything, to be scraping the bottom of the barrel, and for no one to help you out.
Soldiers that have fought for their country, hurricane survivors, or maybe even the single mom who just can't do it by herself. These are the people that beg for maybe a dollar, but really, they just want to be seen. To be heard. To be helped.
It even happened to me.
Now, for anyone who knows me, this may be shocking. For those who don't, I am a nineteen-year-old-girl attending a private college, a thousand miles from home. I have an iPhone and a newer car. I have clothes from trendy stores and I eat out quite a bit. You may be thinking that what I just described to you does NOT sound like the persona of a homeless girl. And you're right, it's not who I am currently. But, there was a time, when it was.
During my time in junior high, I was put into a situation where I lived out of a car, visited local food banks weekly, wore clothes that were donated to shelters, and didn't attend school for a while because I didn't have an actual home address. I vividly remember scraping together a few dollars to buy McDonald's for dinner or being able to pay for a hotel room, for just one more night.
Now, please don't feel bad for me now, because I'm fine and I made it through it. But, I will never forget the feeling of guilt, anxiety, or embarrassment, when my mother stood in front of a 7-eleven gas station, begging from someone to spare us some change. You feel like a cockroach, dirty and disgusting. People walk right by as if you are a ghost. You feel like you just wanna give up and cry, but are trying your best to hold it together.
I think people will never truly understand the reality of being homeless until they are. Sure, there are people who take advantage of the system and use the money for things like drugs or alcohol, which sadly, ruins it for people who truly need it. But, I'm not telling you to give money to every homeless person you see because that just is crazy. But, if you have a spare dollar, hold it out your window. Or give them a bottle of water, maybe even buy them their next meal. Honestly though, just say "hi," because I guarantee that they haven't heard that in a while. Plus, I promise that the look in the person's eye will make it worth it.
If anything, stop stereotyping them as someone who is lazy, dirty, or poor. Because that person could be you. At the end of the day, they are people, just like me and you. The only difference is that their only option is to ask for help. So, by providing that help to them, you could be the person that turned it all around for them. To get them back on their feet. To make them feel seen again.
