It’s easy not to see the homeless in the middle of so much, but they are here and little acts of kindness matter….
I LIVE IN a town where homelessness exists but it’s mostly hidden behind a veil. You don’t hear it talked about much, even among liberal, progressive sorts for whom it generally is a hot button issue.
Even liberals and progressives can become blind to something that’s not on their street, not in their neighborhood.
We are a wealthy community in a wealthy county in a wealthy greater urban area. It’s easy to take an intellectual, rather than a visceral, approach to social issues.
But, if we look, we can see the homeless.
There is the woman who sits on benches downtown in all sorts of weather. She gives out greetings but doesn’t ask for money. She’ll take it if offered and she probably gets more by not asking. Sometimes she’s joined by others. There is a burger joint in one block that turns a blind eye to her and others when they come in to get out of inclement weather. They sit in a corner, sometimes buying a soda. The owner and staff turn a blind eye as long as it’s not crowded. Good for them.
I live a half-block from the homeless shelter. The homeless can sleep there, get a meal, but it’s not a residence. Sometimes in the morning you will see men and women stream out, then when it gets to be about 4:30 p.m., you see the stream going back toward the front door.
I WAS IN the library this morning and saw a couple of signs in the bathroom. They are attached to this post. The library and the downtown branch of the YMCA look the other way when the homeless come in. For the most part they go to the basement of the library and read or lay their heads down on tables and sleep. Sometimes they bring in food and though food and drinks are not allowed, most of us close our eyes when we walk by them.
It’s the same at the Y where they come in to escape winter cold or summer heat. In both places they use the restrooms to wash up. Every now and then a patron can get short if the bathroom door is locked. But, for the most part, we understand. It’s a touching reminder that even without a home or a place to go most people feel a need to be clean, as they can define it or manage it.
I’m not offering solutions here. There are people in the county trying to find ways to help. Mostly what I am saying is that even in wealthy, comfortable communities there are those without shelter and small acts of kindness, even if that act is just looking away if a rule is broken or bent here and there, matter.
Rich Heiland is a retired journalist and semi-retired consultant, trainer and public speaker. During his journalism career he was a reporter, editor, publisher, college instructor, part of a Pulitzer Prize-winning team and a National Newspaper Association Columnist of the Year honoree. He also writes the intodementia.com blog about his family’s experience with dementia. He lives in West Chester, PA and can be reached at [email protected].