Well I did not end up homeless as an experiment , it was scary and hard , trauma hard , yes you can survive but the experience is very different as a woman - so I fear ending up there again 🙏😢💔
I'm sorry to hear of your experience. That kind of hardship is heartbreaking to me. We leave so many women and children and men at the mercy of the crush cruel world. We need to be kinder to each other. Thanks for the comment.
When you wrote about sleeping on a foamy on the floor within a sleeping bag it brought back memories of summers when my aunt would come stay with eight of my cousins. I had grown big enough to find sleeping four in a double bed intolerable so I had a foam mattress on the floor with a sleeping bag.
Even in summer laying on the wood floor is cold as the sun goes down and the windows are open. We had ten girls sleeping in our one bedroom.Getting up at night to go to the washroom was an obstacle course.
I was never homeless but when you’re homesteading you’re always fighting the calendar to prove up and hold onto your land and home. It takes a certain level of dedication and effort that most people are unfamiliar with.
You need to mainline determination no matter what anybody likes or wants. The results of your efforts matter less than the fact that you continue to keep on doggedly working towards achieving the goal of proving up by the required date. There is no time to be sick or even depressed, because if you ease up you won’t survive.
Thanks for sharing that Jocelyn. You gave me a lot to think about. There are many times I was growing up and people said, "other people have it worse, you should be grateful." that made me reluctant to even admit to myself how poorly I was treated. I think that happens a lot in our society today.
I like to listen to people when they tell me they find something difficult to judge as fair or extra tough when they grew up. I find most people do know whether they endured hardship everyday.
I always ask:
“ If you had a choice would you want to relive it just the same or is there something you would have changed?”
My great aunts were taught to never complain, so they often didn’t give details. But when I asked that question they would answer frankly:
“ Oh No! It was too damn cold everyday. We had to take turns sleeping on the side of the bed that was the outer wall.”
The true conditions of everyday life would come spilling out.
I find it’s like that talking to students to. If there is an issue they tell me what doesn’t work for them and what they like more of.
Your story brought back a lot of memories. I saw so many people like your friend when I was homeless. I was homeless for three years. I can't imagine how much lower I would have sunk if I hadn't escaped when I did. I wouldn't wish that life on anyone.
Hi, Walter. I volunteer at a day shelter for homeless men where I live. I have written a few pieces about my experiences there if you would like to take a look.
Thank you, Walter. I love volunteering there. It is real, and it is raw. It is Life. I have just finished a fourth piece and have notes for a fifth. Perhaps some day I will collect these pieces into a book. There are plenty of policy books on homelessness but not much about the day-to-day business of meeting the needs of this population. I actually will be there a little later this morning for my Tuesday morning shift in the mail room!
Hi there Walter what another fantastic piece. While I was never homeless thank god and knock on wood I sure came close quite a few times. Growing up in Philadelphia homelessness is a really big issue. Sad really. Anytime I had an extra few dollars I would give it to the person to get something. Since moving out here to Phoenix I am going to say since the pandemic in the previous neighborhood I lived in before moving here homelessness blew up. It was just awful. I would see the police grabbing their bodies especially in the summer with our dangerous heat and carrying them off. There is a lot of drug use amongst the community which was sad that I would witness. They would ask me for money and even bus passes. I am not saying this because I want to boost myself but I would help where I can as I feel we must help our fellow man. I didn't always have it. Thankfully God has been good to me and I am in a better situation with a great company and finally in a decent department where I can do a job I enjoy. But I do know how dreadful the situation is and I even heard of folks experimenting with being homeless to get an idea what that life is like. But I know it seemed I was talking a lot of ya ya sorry friend. Just wanted to say this was a fantastic piece. I love how you bring truly human elements into your stories. That is much appreciated especially in these hard trying times. I would like to wish you and your family many blessings friend. Thanks again for writing this. You rock Walter. :)
Thanks Bill! I think we do need to have experiences with this sort of thing just to cultivate our sense of humanity. We shouldn't have homelessness. It's a by product of desperation in our culture that comes from how the working class is exploited. Thanks for your kind comments!
I love the phrase “ truth is as fluid as time.” I think that’s very true-ask my sisters. They think my version of history is skewed. I’m just going to tell them it’s fluid.😊
I so enjoy your writing and I always come away with something good.
HI, again, Walter. I also write essays about a variety of subjects, such as my experience of being suicidal after taking a medication the summer before last, the ubiquity of the words icon and iconic, monthly lunches with my father and brother, playing word games, and my favorite Dairy Queen here, which, believe it or not, became part of my suicide recovery. The last piece, For the Dairy Queen Team, is why I write.
Well I did not end up homeless as an experiment , it was scary and hard , trauma hard , yes you can survive but the experience is very different as a woman - so I fear ending up there again 🙏😢💔
I'm sorry to hear of your experience. That kind of hardship is heartbreaking to me. We leave so many women and children and men at the mercy of the crush cruel world. We need to be kinder to each other. Thanks for the comment.
“The answers you seek are often hidden in the pain you refuse to see.”
Such a true sentiment.
When you wrote about sleeping on a foamy on the floor within a sleeping bag it brought back memories of summers when my aunt would come stay with eight of my cousins. I had grown big enough to find sleeping four in a double bed intolerable so I had a foam mattress on the floor with a sleeping bag.
Even in summer laying on the wood floor is cold as the sun goes down and the windows are open. We had ten girls sleeping in our one bedroom.Getting up at night to go to the washroom was an obstacle course.
I was never homeless but when you’re homesteading you’re always fighting the calendar to prove up and hold onto your land and home. It takes a certain level of dedication and effort that most people are unfamiliar with.
You need to mainline determination no matter what anybody likes or wants. The results of your efforts matter less than the fact that you continue to keep on doggedly working towards achieving the goal of proving up by the required date. There is no time to be sick or even depressed, because if you ease up you won’t survive.
Thanks for sharing that Jocelyn. You gave me a lot to think about. There are many times I was growing up and people said, "other people have it worse, you should be grateful." that made me reluctant to even admit to myself how poorly I was treated. I think that happens a lot in our society today.
I like to listen to people when they tell me they find something difficult to judge as fair or extra tough when they grew up. I find most people do know whether they endured hardship everyday.
I always ask:
“ If you had a choice would you want to relive it just the same or is there something you would have changed?”
My great aunts were taught to never complain, so they often didn’t give details. But when I asked that question they would answer frankly:
“ Oh No! It was too damn cold everyday. We had to take turns sleeping on the side of the bed that was the outer wall.”
The true conditions of everyday life would come spilling out.
I find it’s like that talking to students to. If there is an issue they tell me what doesn’t work for them and what they like more of.
Listening to people share problems is important.
Your story brought back a lot of memories. I saw so many people like your friend when I was homeless. I was homeless for three years. I can't imagine how much lower I would have sunk if I hadn't escaped when I did. I wouldn't wish that life on anyone.
Thank you Lawson! I'm so glad you managed to escape. Best to you and thanks for your kind words!
You’re Welcome.
Hi, Walter. I volunteer at a day shelter for homeless men where I live. I have written a few pieces about my experiences there if you would like to take a look.
Angels, Fire Here https://pollywalkerblakemore.substack.com/p/angels?r=4z0w0i
Angels, Fire Everywhere https://pollywalkerblakemore.substack.com/p/angels-fire-everywhere?r=4z0w0i
Too Many Options https://pollywalkerblakemore.substack.com/p/too-many-options?r=4z0w0i
And also some micro nonfiction about a homeless camp https://pollywalkerblakemore.substack.com/p/out-ef5?r=4z0w0i
I enjoy your writing. Thank you - Polly
These are powerful pieces of writing. I'm going to have to think more on them.
Thank you, Walter. I love volunteering there. It is real, and it is raw. It is Life. I have just finished a fourth piece and have notes for a fifth. Perhaps some day I will collect these pieces into a book. There are plenty of policy books on homelessness but not much about the day-to-day business of meeting the needs of this population. I actually will be there a little later this morning for my Tuesday morning shift in the mail room!
Hi there Walter what another fantastic piece. While I was never homeless thank god and knock on wood I sure came close quite a few times. Growing up in Philadelphia homelessness is a really big issue. Sad really. Anytime I had an extra few dollars I would give it to the person to get something. Since moving out here to Phoenix I am going to say since the pandemic in the previous neighborhood I lived in before moving here homelessness blew up. It was just awful. I would see the police grabbing their bodies especially in the summer with our dangerous heat and carrying them off. There is a lot of drug use amongst the community which was sad that I would witness. They would ask me for money and even bus passes. I am not saying this because I want to boost myself but I would help where I can as I feel we must help our fellow man. I didn't always have it. Thankfully God has been good to me and I am in a better situation with a great company and finally in a decent department where I can do a job I enjoy. But I do know how dreadful the situation is and I even heard of folks experimenting with being homeless to get an idea what that life is like. But I know it seemed I was talking a lot of ya ya sorry friend. Just wanted to say this was a fantastic piece. I love how you bring truly human elements into your stories. That is much appreciated especially in these hard trying times. I would like to wish you and your family many blessings friend. Thanks again for writing this. You rock Walter. :)
Thanks Bill! I think we do need to have experiences with this sort of thing just to cultivate our sense of humanity. We shouldn't have homelessness. It's a by product of desperation in our culture that comes from how the working class is exploited. Thanks for your kind comments!
Thanks 4 the gr8 piece! It made me think And feel.
I love the phrase “ truth is as fluid as time.” I think that’s very true-ask my sisters. They think my version of history is skewed. I’m just going to tell them it’s fluid.😊
I so enjoy your writing and I always come away with something good.
HI, again, Walter. I also write essays about a variety of subjects, such as my experience of being suicidal after taking a medication the summer before last, the ubiquity of the words icon and iconic, monthly lunches with my father and brother, playing word games, and my favorite Dairy Queen here, which, believe it or not, became part of my suicide recovery. The last piece, For the Dairy Queen Team, is why I write.
Below are links if you would like to take a look:
What's It Like? (about being suicidal)
https://pollywalkerblakemore.substack.com/p/whats-it-like?r=4z0w0i
Taking on an Icon - the Word Itself
https://pollywalkerblakemore.substack.com/p/taking-a-look-at-an-icon-the-word?r=4z0w0i
The First Wednesday of the Month (about the lunches with my dad and brother)
https://pollywalkerblakemore.substack.com/p/the-first-wednesday-of-the-month?r=4z0w0i
Working It with Word Games
https://pollywalkerblakemore.substack.com/p/working-it-with-word-games?r=4z0w0i
The Dairy Queen Dream Team (about my favorite DQ store)
https://pollywalkerblakemore.substack.com/p/dairy-queen?r=4z0w0i
For the Dairy Queen Team
https://pollywalkerblakemore.substack.com/p/for-the-dairy-queen-team?r=4z0w0i