By Kendall Hill
kendalllhilll.wordpress.com
In order to understand ourselves, we must get back to the basics. But how?
We must become homeless.
I’m not saying pack up your bags and go live on the streets right now. It’s still pretty cold out there. But we must live in the mindset of a homeless person.
Have you ever seen a homeless man beg on the streets for loose change that we hold onto in our pockets? There is something scary, sad, and humbling about that all at the same time.
Scary because grown men are reduced to mere boys who ask boys to spare them some of their own lunch money so they can feed their new born baby boy.
Sad because they must compete to be homeless. I once saw two homeless men fighting over a spot on the street that seemed to get the most traffic of people. When we live in a society where grown men and women have to compete just to be a begger, we have reached a new low if you ask me.
It is humbling because I know some of these people truly are at one with themselves.
When you are on the streets 24 hours a day, you must learn a thing or two about who you really are. What you’ll do to stay warm, how much you’ll beg to make another meal, or how courageous you are to show your face to a city you might have lived in your entire life.
You must learn alot about yourself behind a “Spare change for the homeless” cardboard sign.
And you must do alot of self evaluating.
“Why did I make the mistakes I made back then?” or “Why did I let drugs/gangs/money control my life and ultimately spiral me into this position?”
To tell the truth, these people have had the most time to consider what they have done wrong, and everyday it gets thrown back in their faces. Being homeless is ultimately more humiliating than being in prison, and far better than being caught by your parents.
But you must learn a lot, too. About right from wrong. And hopefully, how to get back on your feet again.
So as you pass homeless people on the street, don’t think “they could learn a lot from me.”
What could you learn from them?
