Redeeming The Homeless Part Two: The Personal Approach

Allow The Water To Smooth Out The Rocks In Your Life

Continued from Part One.

I'd like to expand in further detail my initial expression to my friend's question about the homeless.

The appropriation of sustainable land is key, or land that can be made sustainable.

Considering the reality that the U.S. (and many other countries) have a mixed economy (both free-market and planned economy), to make plans in order to succeed is key.

Success isn't always measured in monetary ways; income being only a single and sometimes dubious dimension of measuring success.

The effort of proper people management cannot always be argued from a performance-based perspective (how some people ask "does it make money?")

We are dealing with human beings; our very brothers, sisters, cousins and friends.

An easy way to initially approach the homeless issue is to place yourself in their position.

Imagine how YOU would like to be treated, spoken to and helped (or ignored) if you were homeless.

After placing yourself in the place of a homeless person, imagine then someone you dearly love and respect, and they are that homeless person.

Consider how you would speak and treat your dearly loved homeless parent, sibling, close friend, etc..

Would money or your schedule be an issue if it was yourself or your dearly loved one that is homeless?

Would you question the expenses or whether or not the effort to assist and resolve your / their homeless situation would be 'worth it'?

You wouldn't hope money would be put before YOUR wellbeing, and perhaps you wouldn't do such a thing considering that dearly loved person you know.

So why is money and time justified reasons to NOT helping our homeless brothers and sisters?

When I went through my time of struggle in the spiritual desert and was practically homeless, laziness wasn't the issue.

I was broken on the inside.

Our homeless brothers and sisters are also broken in a myriad of ways...and money does not always repair the broken heart and shattered mind.

You can walk around throwing $100.00 bills to every homeless you see, yet I say greater is the impact in that human being when you walk around displaying a smiling face and sharing warm words with them and perhaps a meal or redemptive opportunity.

When looking at our personal and collective resources, it becomes very clear there is a well$pring of opportunity available to help those who most need it.

It is the manner monies are used; the human element, the smile and kind word that accompanies the helping effort.

Besides the humanitarian consideration, it benefits society as a whole to properly assist homeless people.

Read the government results for yourself when people are put before profits and a good government plan is implemented.

Here is a government plan to pre-empt homelessness.

Prevention of crime, ill health, drug abuse, litter and several other negative outcomes are curtailed when people are treated like people and are disallowed to simply drift and be trampled upon by others.

This is where enforcing loitering and vagrant laws can provide positive results...the manner the law is enforced determining the outcome of lawful compliance.

For those who may not be ready to overcome their personal struggles with drugs or other self-inflicted ailments, but desire to instead drift and participate in ulterior methods of survival that are typically illegal or harmful to society, these individuals should be held responsible for their negative impacts and not allowed to be a victim or victimizer of the vulnerable.

In the city where I currently reside, there seems to be more willingness to help the stray dog or cat than help the stray human being.

Animals are easy to care after, people are more involved.

But aren't the rewards exponentially greater with helping people than animals?

Perhaps the effort to help people is easily ignored because the animal does not speak and cannot insult the good effort from the human being.

Yet, if a stray dog or cat does bite or attempt a self-defense response, the human helper may recognize this an act not done in malice but in response to prior hostilities experienced by the stray animal.

Cannot the same logic be applied to the human being when they have a hard time appreciating help from another human being?

As with the selfish and greedy attitudes some individuals have towards the broken humanity found among the homeless population, it is more a self-gratifying effort (again, quite easy) to 'save' the stray animal.

Animals are subject to humans, while humans are our peers.

The helper cannot help but possibly see themselves in those they help...and this provides for a growing and learning experience that too many people are accustomed to avoiding.

People don't want to feel certain things, so they focus on only what feels good and what is easy.

Continued in Part Three.

Comments

Popular Posts