National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week

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Scattered on the street corners and bus stops throughout Miami.  Sleeping under overpasses, and carrying everything they own in a shopping cart.  Holding up tattered signs, and asking for help.  We catch glimpses of homelessness in Miami all around us when we take the time to pay attention.  Is it easier for us to look past them?  Where do our thoughts go when we do take the time to notice them?  Have the homeless in Miami sort of faded into the background, blending into the blur of everything else around us?

National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week Becky Gonzalez Contributor Miami Moms Blog
Photo by Todd Diemer on Unsplash

Taking Time to Be Aware

To the homeless man at the Target cafe in Kendall,

I don’t actually know if you’re homeless or not.  You walked in, pushing a shopping cart with three backpacks.  Backpacks filled to overflowing because they were probably carrying everything you own.  I think you may be the man I saw at the red light just before I made the left turn towards Target.  You were on the opposite side of the intersection, holding up a sign I was unable to read.  Not sure why, but I noticed you.  

When I saw you, I was instantly reminded of the care packages I put together not too long ago.  Maybe that’s why you caught my eye from across that busy intersection on Kendall Drive.  The care packages were an idea I discovered on Pinterest, and I finally got around to putting them together last summer.  So incredibly simple, really.  Dollar store items in a gallon-sized storage bag.  I handed them out whenever I had the opportunity to at a red light.  We even went out as a family on Christmas evening to pass out a few.  It took us longer than our original plan, but we finally distributed every single one of those 20 bags we started with.

Taking Time to Care

I’m also reminded of that homeless gentleman we gave our dinner leftovers to on our trip to New York last year.  Applebee’s leftovers and Times Square Church right before heading to a show.  I’ll never forget the joy in that man’s eyes as he greeted us at the door of the church.  I’ll never forget the joy I felt in being able to share my food with someone.  Even though I didn’t know him personally, I knew enough to realize he was cold and hungry.    

It’s time I put together a fresh supply of those care packages again.  That’s where my mind drifted to as I sat there at the red light, watching you from across the intersection.

National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week Becky Gonzalez Contributor Miami Moms Blog

I made that left turn and headed to Target, which was still a few blocks away.  Was that you I saw at the intersection?  If it was, you walked for quite a ways in the hot sun to get there.

I saw you walk up to me as I was sitting at a table all the way at the back of the Target bistro.  You weren’t actually walking up to me, but you were headed in my direction, pushing that shopping cart with your super-stuffed backpacks.  Looks like you had been able to buy a personal pan pizza for yourself to eat.  I imagine you had been able to collect enough money to purchase it.  I smiled as I thought about how happy you must have been to be able to eat, at least for that one meal.

You pulled out your water bottle from your backpack.  Your head hung low in your hands for a brief moment before you continued eating.  

Fresh Eyes to See

I’d love to say that joy was all I felt as I sat there.  When I first saw you headed in my direction to sit down, I felt a sudden overwhelming sense of concern just hit me out of nowhere.  I felt scared.  Were you going to try to talk to me?  Were you mentally unstable?  Was I in danger?  All of these thoughts and then some flashed through my mind in a matter of seconds.  You’d never know it by looking at me, though, because I avoided looking at you too directly just in case that accidentally set you off.  I looked past you, and let you blur into the background of that busy cafe.

Thankfully, I didn’t stay there.  You sat down at the table just in front of me to the left, your back towards me, and in an instant, I was given fresh eyes to see.  Eyes to see you as you were:  a man, made in God’s image.  A man worthy of being noticed, regardless of what his present circumstances were.  A man blessed with an opportunity to have a hot meal.  You were able to come in from the heat and enjoy some refreshment in the cool air conditioning.  I was overwhelmed with gratitude, and thankful for the chance to truly notice with the gift of fresh sight.      

Homelessness Awareness in November

Did you know that Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week is in November?  Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week, which takes place this year from November 16th through November 24th, is an annual program where people come together across the country to draw attention to the problems of hunger and homelessness. Participating groups spend the week holding a series of educational, service, fundraising, and advocacy events. 

Did you know that the Miami Rescue Mission has been serving people experiencing homelessness in Miami and Broward since 1922?  Their mission is to transform the lives of homeless men, women, and children through comprehensive residential programs to effect lasting change and empower them to be productive members of society.  They provide food, shelter, substance abuse treatment, education, computer literacy, job placement, healthcare, spiritual development, and housing with Christian love, compassion, and encouragement.

National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week Becky Gonzalez Contributor Miami Moms Blog

You may choose to look the other way, but you can never say again that you did not know.  –William Wilberforce