Spare some thought
One thing that stood out on my trip to Sydney (apart from the amount of Asians living there), is the amount of homeless people on the streets. Especially their amazing ability to stay crouched on all fours usually at busy junctions or intersections as people mill by them, throwing them a cautious/curious stare. As we continued on our tour of the city, you couldn't help but notice the amount of homeless people either as previously stated or asleep on park benches.
Unlike homeless people back home (in Ireland) they never shouted or berated you they meekly lay there completely at odds with the hustle & bustle around, not making a sound, you'd have to double check to see if their alive.
The kind of homeless person you nervously avoid as the approach you on the street, for fear the might somehow attack/infect/harm you. We've all been guilty of doing it, looking like your having some sort of nervous seizure as you weave & dance like Michael Flatly in his prime to avoid them..but why?.
Why do we do it?, their humans too their just like me & you. It's plain to see they've fallen on hard times for whatever reason. We can all sit on our uppity pedestal and lazily say that they must be alcoholics, drug addicts, etc.
'What causes homelessness?You might find yourself homeless for different reasons affecting either yourself or someone else in your home.
Some causes of being homeless include:
Physical, emotional or sexual abuse
Family and relationship breakdown with parents, siblings or extended family
Domestic violence
Being kicked out or feeling unwanted at home - e.g. step-families
Financial problems or unemployment
Physical or mental illness
Intellectual disability
Drug and alcohol abuse
Gambling
Grief or loss
Not enough affordable housing
Overcrowding.
Some causes of being homeless include:
Physical, emotional or sexual abuse
Family and relationship breakdown with parents, siblings or extended family
Domestic violence
Being kicked out or feeling unwanted at home - e.g. step-families
Financial problems or unemployment
Physical or mental illness
Intellectual disability
Drug and alcohol abuse
Gambling
Grief or loss
Not enough affordable housing
Overcrowding.
All these factors might cause you to become homeless but they also may be some of the reasons why you stay homeless. For example, drugs and alcohol abuse or lack of money can be both a cause and a result of homelessness.'
What provoked me to write this was a brief encounter I had with a homeless person this morning in Perth. A stereotypical 'bum' the poor man had a long matted beard, unkempt hair, a stained and tatty suit jacket and pants. He also had no shoes as he gingerly moved down through the CBD looking like he was walking on hot coals.
I had the perfect view of his world as I was walking directly behind him, I could see his every desperate attempt to engage people asking for some spare change. Usually been met with contemptful stares & gazes, others with pity and some with complete fear. I must have been behind him for only 5 minutes but it felt like a lifetime.
The suddenly like Ali in his prime he turned on a sixpence and was facing me, his face was awash with what looked like pain, panic, bewilderment, loneliness, fear all wrapped into one. He mumbled something incoherent but I garnered the word change from it, but unfortunately for him he was asking the wrong person (a broke backpacker down to his last). I couldn't help I wish I could.
I like so many other danced past him and continued on my way. However as I jogged around the bridges all I could think of was him. Wouldn't it have been nice to stop and engage with him, just to talk to him, who was he?, where did he come from?, how did he end up on the streets of Perth etc.
Can you imagine going through that everyday of your life from here on out?, relying on the goodwill and compassion of a society that is slowly moving away from it core values. Me and my mate had that horrible fear of being homeless if only for three days in Sydney..a fear I never want again in my lifetime.
We all pray we never end up like these poor souls but what if it happens?, how would you react to having to live out your days like that?, Would people every wonder who you were before you were homeless, or just pass you by without a care in the world?. I don't pretend to know the answers, I don't know where to start..just some food for thought I suppose!
Helps to shed some light -
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