Or does that depend on where you look?
The lights are on in Beanie Cellars, and the rain is lashing down outside. So much for flaming June!
But no matter… because the coffee is on, and our guest Blogger Charlotte is here to share some thoughts.
With Layla the guide dog curled around her feet, Charlotte begins -
Homeless Isn’t
Invisible?
Hello everyone…
So, last time I was writing here I was
living in a hostel. I am lucky enough to say currently I have managed to get a
flat from a local housing association. Though it is only just starting to feel
like home. I still don’t have carpets or curtains yet, but I am working on these
things.
We had to deal with damp that affected my
asthma when we first moved in which was not fun. It resulted in two trips to
A&E. Glad that is sorted now!
Even though I am no longer homeless I
do not stop seeing the world around me. Having a permanent address does not
change what I went through. Or to some extent it doesn't change how people treat me.
We all know
someone who has fallen on hard times. We are all just one, or if we are lucky
two, pay checks away from not being able to pay the rent or our mortgage. Lots of
things can lead to being homeless. Loss of job, trying to escape an abusive
relationship, leaving care, illness or injury, debt, and many more things.
Very few people chose
to be homeless. I know I did not chose to not be able to afford rent and food,
or to have to leave university due to being hospitalised.
Homelessness certainly is not invisible. Every day
when you walk through any town you will see people sleeping on the streets or
begging.
Do you look away? OR do you look for them? Check to see if the same
ones are in the same places every day? Do you smile at them or offer them
water?
Or, like so many people, do you pretend these homeless people are not there? You are the ones that decide if
you see them. If you chose to look or not, in your heart you still know they are there.
Then there are the homeless who don’t
look homeless, the ones you can not easily see.
But if you walk by your local
food bank you will see them.
Hiding - in plain sight.
On Sundays there is a food hand out near me that
due to the volume of people that need it in my city has to be run under a
bridge. I know near this bridge are two hostels. But you could walk right past
this throng of people and not notice them if you wanted. That will not make
them go away though.
You can pretend these people brought it on themselves, or
they are not there. But you know you are lying to yourself.
We all see them,
but most of us do nothing.
In doing nothing do we say this situation is okay?
Only by
ignoring them are we allowing them to be invisible, it is our choice not a true
fact that makes any of us invisible or shunned.
As you read this the person you
talked to at work may be sofa surfing or even living in a hostel. That person
that sat next to you at the doctors or on the bus may have nowhere to sleep
tonight.
They, WE - are everywhere. All human. All the same.
Yet we, the luckier ones, we chose who
we can and can not speak to based on our address or lack thereof.
So next time you are walking in a big
town or city, don’t keep your headphones in or play on your phone. Look around
you and count the number of people sleeping rough. See if it is the same
everyday. Smile at them and ask if they are okay. In the heat we have had if
you have a spare bottle of water hand it to them.
When you are next at work or on the bus look
around you. Can you tell who is homeless and who is not? There is no
difference.
Most of us will not be able to tell the difference. Because there
is no difference, we are all just human.
So do not judge them. Do not ignore them, do not
let your self believe that this is okay. Take notice and take account for your
actions. They are not invisible any more then you are.
They are no less
important then you are.
Homeless isn’t worthless…
Homeless isn’t invisible…
Homeless isn’t a choice.
Thank you Charlotte. One of the things we hear most often from our homeless friends is that they feel ignored and isolated, less than human. And that can't be right.
You can follow Charlotte and Layla on Twitter where she is @blindseyeview
If you would like to get more involved, do something to help our homeless friends perhaps, then connect with us on Twitter at @beanies_masato
If you would like to buy something to add to outreach funds checkout
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