PLEASE MEET TEX
It had rained hard and Tex's tennis-shoes were sopping wet. He was kicking garbage and personal belongings into a big pile, stuff left behind after another Seattle sweep.
I introduced myself and asked how he was doing. He looked at me, smiled, and said, "Hello Rex, I'm Tex." And then immediately recited a paragraph from the bible explaining the lesson he was learning.
Tex kicked a plastic bottle twenty or so feet right into the middle of the pile and I asked if he had played soccer. He said, "No, why?" Then shared more about the word of God.
We walked side by side kicking garbage towards the pile, quietly exchanging thoughts about life. He had spent time in prison and the rest roaming the country. He was on a journey.
When we had the entire area cleaned Tex looked at me and said, "Well, really nice meeting you. Tomorrow or the next day the city will come with a truck, pick the pile up, and get credit for cleaning the entire place. That's just the way it is."
We both paused. He took off the necklace he was wearing, which had several wood beads and a carved monkey claw, and gave it to me, saying, "Here, this is for you."
SODO neighborhood | Rex
A QUIET THOUGHT - If you're moved by the goodness of this community, please visit http://www.facinghomelessness.org/ and click on the 'donate' button and consider a "monthly recurring" donation of just $5 in support of the work. THANK YOU!
#JustSayHello #Kindness #FacingHomelessness
let'sTALK
One of the questions asked about CommunityCleanUPs is if those that have made the mess are helping cleanUP.
Answer: Sometimes YES and most of the time NO.
If this does not sit right with you because you feel the people that made the mess should be the ones to clean it up, please take a moment to read this post and begin a discussion here. We are all learning as we go and the best way forward is through open respectful conversation.
Here are four thoughts:
1. Most people living outside are suffering. Not just a little, but a great deal. Staying warm and dry with enough to eat is their primary concern. The greater the suffering the less able we are to take care of anything other than what helps us get through the moment. For those living outside, that 'moment' is a constant day to day experience.
2. Most people living outside are dealing with some level of trauma. Often this trauma is debilitating. Even the simplest of things can be made difficult.
3. Addiction to drugs further narrows the ability to take care of the simplest of things. It is important to remember that drug-addiction is the symptom of a greater issue involving trauma and mental health.
4. Nobody likes garbage. This is true for those living inside and outside. Unlike for those living inside, for those outside there is not only no garbage pickUP, but also no place to take it.
Homelessness is a complex issue. We can either wash our hands of it and walk past or we can come closer to find real answers for ourselves. Looking forward to this discussion.
These photos are from our 13th CommunityCleanUP! So grateful for everyone that again came out to take part!!!
Green Lake neighborhood | Rex
A QUIET THOUGHT - If you're moved by the goodness of this community, please visit http://www.facinghomelessness.org/ and click on the 'donate' button and consider a "monthly recurring" donation of just $5 in support of the work. THANK YOU!
#Kindness #JustSayHello #FacingHomelessness
happinessRECIPE
PLEASE MEET OUR COMMUNITY:
Two easy steps:
1. 10:30AM - pick up garbage with a lots of kind people.
2. 12:30PM - hug and say goodbye to lots of kind people.
Show up this Sunday 10/20/19 from 10:30-12:30 at 5th Ave NE & NE 76th St. for our 13th Community CleanUP!! I promise you will leave with a SMILE on your face and a goodGOOD beautiful feeling in your heart.
Come out and hear why we do this, come out and help cleanUP our city, come out to offer kind service to those in need, come out to help build healthy community, come out to make new friends, come out for whatever reason you have!
Together, one relationship at a time, we create the community fabric needed to address and end homelessness.
Green Lake neighborhood | Rex
A QUIET THOUGHT - If you're moved by the goodness of this community, please visit http://www.facinghomelessness.org/ and click on the 'donate' button and consider a "monthly recurring" donation of just $5 in support of the work. THANK YOU!
#Kindness #FacingHomelessness #JustSayHello #CommunityCleanUP
communityCLEANUP
PLEASE MEET OUR COMMUNITY:
It's Sunday morning. You wake up slowly around 8:30ish, you wiggle in bed for a short bit, enjoy a cup of coffee, a lazy breakfast. At 9:45 you sneak in 20 minutes of yoga and during "picking up litter" pose, you say to yourself, "Hey, wait, I don't need to pretend to pick up litter, I can join the wonderful folks taking part in the Community CleanUP today!"
This Sunday will be our 12th cleanUP, having already picked up over 600 hefty-size bags of garbage, around 13,000 needles, and artfully performed an uncountable number of stretching yoga poses!
And, and, get this - IT IS SO MUCH FUN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Hope you can join us this Sunday, 10:30-12:30 at 701 James Street, which is at the east side of I-5. We'll be gathering at the corner under the trees.
A heartfelt THANKS to everyone that came to cleanUP #11, here are some of the photos!
Sign up here: https://timecounts.org/facing-homelessness/events/21908
Downtown neighborhood | Rex
A QUIET THOUGHT - If you're moved by the goodness of this community, please visit http://www.facinghomelessness.org/ and click on the 'donate' button and consider a "monthly recurring" donation of just $5 in support of the work. THANK YOU!
#Kindness #JustSayHello #CommunityCleanUP #FacingHomelessness
communityCLEANUPS
PLEASE MEET OUR COMMUNITY
All the Community CleanUPs end the same way, with everyone feeling amazed and proud of the transformation that just took place, it is a wowWOW every single time!!
If you are looking for something beautiful to do in community with a bunch of kind thoughtful people, then come join what is usually a group of 30 or so folks wanting to make a difference.
The immediate goal of each cleanUP is to make new friends, with those living inside and outside, through the joy of picking up litter! You might laugh, but it is crazy enjoyable to pick up litter, filling that immediate gratification bucket!
The long-term goal is to beautifully cleanUP our city and compassionately step forward to stop the sweeps! Sweeping is for garbage, not people suffering to survive.
If you are interested, the next cleanUP is September 22, 2019 from 10:30-12:30 at James Street and I-5, at the east side of the freeway.
This will be our eleventh Community CleanUP, makes me smile so big just typing that, knowing all the beauty and friendships that have come from the first ten!
See you SUNDAY!!!
Seattle neighborhoods | Rex
A QUIET THOUGHT - If you're moved by the goodness of this community, please visit http://www.facinghomelessness.org/ and click on the 'donate' button and consider a "monthly recurring" donation of just $5 in support of the work. THANK YOU!
#Kindness #CommunityCleanUP #FacingHomelessness #JustSayHello
