Urban Plunge

Story:
Earlier this week, the other Dry Bones interns and I went on an "Urban Plunge." We were given a scenario, very similar to the situations many of our homeless friends deal with weekly, and given these simple objectives: (1) check your email to get in touch with your friend in Denver (2) find a place that the 9 of you can sleep tonight (3) find a place where you can get food for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Our mission centered around the most basic human needs- food, shelter, communication.

I won't go into all the details, but it was really hard. I became tired and frustrated. We couldn't get on the internet anywhere, b/c even at the public library they told us we had to have an ID to get on the guest computers, and many/most homeless folks don't have IDs. We never figured out how to get in touch with our friend. After walking around forever, we found a church that had a list of shelters and free meals, but there was no shelter that would take all of us- men and women between the ages of 19-25. So we would have to split up into male/female groups, or under/over 21 yrs old. Since we're each others' only family, this is not ideal. We could eat daily, at multiple places, which was sweet. But then we still had the task of figuring out where the places were and getting there at the correct times.

Thoughts:
I rarely think about anything of these things. I think about how I "need" coffee, or a new computer, or a new job.... our friends spend their time thinking about what they need to do in order to survive. I only had to "pretend" for 3 hours..... this is daily reality for so many of our friends.

Story:
I met a man last night who I did not know, at first, was homeless. We were talking about the week, and though our conversation, I learned that he volunteers at every Rockies baseball game, and on his own time often takes the animals at the shelter on walks because he loves animals and "knows what it's like to feel caged in, and it's horrible- they deserve to feel free and walk around." I also learned that he has been in Denver for 2 yrs now without a home. Because he does not have an ID, and does not have a birth certificate (crazy childhood/parents- has never seen it) to get an ID, he cannot legally receive full-time employment. Thus, he's been in contact with his home state, has done what they ask, and is waiting and waiting for them to follow up and help him get another birth certificate. In the meantime, he frequents the day labor place here, getting work when it's available, though we all know that in today's economy, these jobs are no prevalent. Still he's kind, patient, and optimistic.

Thoughts:
His willingness to share his story with me blesses me, and I admire his patience and positive attitude. Yet, I don't share in that patience or optimism. Instead, I feel frustrated. Not at anyone or thing, but with the reality of unavailable opportunity, in the land of.....