A New Direction in Life

Seven years ago, on a random day in the middle of a very cold January, I was on my way to visit a friend and happened to drive past a homeless man by the side of the road, shivering noticeably, holding a sign that said, "I'm cold and hungry. Please help me if you can." 

On that particular day, I was pretty broke myself.  I also instantly realized that I had eaten both breakfast and lunch that day and was driving down to road in a heated car on my day off going to visit a friend and hang out watching television all day.  Surely, there was something I could do.  A few blocks down the road, I pulled into a parking spot at a McDonald's restaurant and started digging in my purse, the ashtray, and the floorboards for change.

What I found was enough to buy three double cheeseburgers—they were still on the dollar menu then—and a medium coffee.  I drove back the way I had come, found a spot in a nearby parking lot, and walked toward the man with the food and hot coffee in hand.  When he spotted me, and realized that I was intentionally approaching him, he came in my direction.  Completely unsure of what to say, I wordlessly handed him the bag and cup.  He smiled back at me and turned to walk back and collect his sign and the old milk crate he had been sitting on.  By the time I had walked back to my car, the man had silently melted away into some nearby woods.  I never saw that man again, but I have also never forgotten the genuine smile that crossed his face at the gift of fast food and coffee.

In the years since that day, I have helped when I could.  Sometimes it has been a dollar or a handful of change handed out the window of my car.  Other times it has been a sack of fast food or a few cans extra purchased during a grocery store trip.  The feelings that come after such a small donation last for days, and these encounters make very lasting impressions on my heart and mind.

Last week, I was blessed with an opportunity to feed a group of local homeless for several days in a row with perfectly good food that was earmarked for the trash.  The first day I stopped, these people were so happy that I had taken the time to stop and help them.  I couldn't get past the feeling that it wasn't enough.  That night, I determined that it was ok that I had limits.  I have a son to take care of as well.  If I do what I am able to do, it is still good.

The next day, I realized that with a little help I could do so much more.  So I enlisted the help of a friend to build care packs to take back the next day.  Several friends gave me some stacks of used clothing—jeans, T-shirts, hats—and my dad even chipped in to help purchase some underwear (new) at the flea market.  I spent the weekend organizing and labeling and sorting all of these items into my car for efficient distribution.

In the process of all this preparation, it dawned on me that there are people who make a living doing exactly what I was doing: helping the homeless and other people in need.

It was my light bulb moment.

On Monday, when I returned to a familiar gathering spot stocked with clean clothes and toiletries and food, I found myself surrounded by the happiest group of people I think I have ever encountered.  With life situations that don't offer these people much chance for happiness, moments like those can change the course of their week.  And moments like those have changed my entire way of thinking.

As of now, a career working with the homeless (or decreasing homeless altogether) is my new life goal.  I'm not sure how to get there, yet, but at 28½ years old, I finally know what I want to do "when I grow up."  I have no plans to do anything rash like quit my job right now.  For now, I am beginning a stage of researching my options and planning a route to my ultimate goal.  Along the way, I will continue doing what I am doing, as much as I am able.

As a first step toward my goal, I have reformatted my neglected Quote-A-Day blog into a new section of the site geared toward supporting my missions for the homeless.  There is already a button in the bar at the top of the page—labeled "Red! Outreach"—to get you to that part of the site.  It is likely that these changes have gone unnoticed to most people.  That button will take you to a portion of my site that will contain posts I write about my work with the homeless and the journey toward my ultimate goal of making this a lifelong career.  Also, there, you will find pages containing information on creating care packages for the homeless and how you can donate items to me or to one of the other organizations in this area that works for those in need.

This post is a sort of "coming out" for me, since most people I know haven't yet heard about these feelings I'm having.  The few people I have told have either been skeptical (people who don't know me as well) or have been not at all surprised (close friends/family who know me well).  Either way, everyone has been supportive so far.  I hope that you will all check out the new Outreach section of Red! Blog and help me, as you are able, to achieve my goals and support my new-found passion.