Humanity's Shadow...

Humanity's Shadow

When your life is lived on the streets, you literally

become Humanity's Shadow...

living under, or rather merely existing through, shadows 

of color faded after being left out too long in the sun.

You don't know what it's like living under humanity's shadow... 

not being seen or treated as part of society, 

never brought into the folds of friendship.... most, if not all,

interactions are surface level only, nothing of substance.

Because people are afraid of those living on the streets,

we're not invited to be part of life.

Living on the streets puts you in hyper-survival mode. 

Your life centers on finding food, shelter, and places to clean up. 

Living on the streets means dealing with life in its rawest form.

Without a filter...

Subjected to things no one should be, and witness to

things that should never be seen. Living without being seen...

at least not in any meaningful way. Merely existing in and through the 

shadows of life, and under the shadows of humanity.

The cost living is exponentially high, especially more so in the

state of California, where the cost of living is not only exponentially 

higher than any place else in the nation, is it also cost prohibitive 

when forced to live life on the streets. Paying excessive taxes, 

which are taxed and those taxes are heavily taxed.

Making it impossible to live with any measure of comfort.

Compromising our lives even more, and the negative effects that

result from other people imposing their wills on everyone else's lives.... 

how we will “live”, what we can do, and where we can do things., 

has had and continues to have very negative consequences

in every aspect of our lives

Further hardships imposed on those in the state of California makes

living on the street, living in the state.... unlivable, untenable. 

Especially with the laws that have a direct negative impact on our lives;

living without a home, like the plastic bag ban, where not only 

have prices increased exponentially, making life even more of a 

challenge on the streets, even more so in terms of obtaining 

food and supplies, but taking away what we need to carry our 

purchases from the stores and restaurants and then charging us 

for the “privilege” of carrying out our food, and other purchases

from the places of business... because paying for the purchases

are not enough, we are charged 

more to carry them out of the store and restaurants....

Taking away plastic bags has a detrimental affect for those of us 

having to live on the streets. Now, instead of the protection the bags 

offered to keep our things and food dry, our stuff is damaged from

being in direct contact with the elements of rain and wind, and 

we no longer have a way to keep our food dry.

So we end up wasting what little funds we have on food 

that can no longer be eaten before it is destroyed by the weather. 

California laws have made life on the streets impossible to endure.

We are the ones most affected by all the laws imposed on the state, as it

has a very direct, very negative impact on our lives, health and safety.

Now, going into any grocery store, retail place of business, 

or any and all food places.... we are forced to take in and use our

own bags sold to us to carry out our purchases of foods, and necessities,

putting that much more of a burden on an already heavy

burden of being forced to live without a home 24/7. Then the costs of

everything has risen so far out of control, even getting the barest necessities

is a real hardship, the challenges the extremely high costs

of everything.... makes living more of a luxury, than the

necessary thing it is.

Barely existing because law makers insist on making life in 

California a place where no one can actually live. And that is no

way to live. Having to live on the streets is no way to live....

barely existing, struggling to just survive is not a life.

But then, living on the streets, and taking your already burdened

bags into the stores or restaurants, you are accused of stealing....

because of your bags and burden carried inside.

So it is no-win all around.

Nearly half my life has been lived on the streets...and it is a life 

that encompasses everything I do. I Breathe Street life, I eat Street life,

I dream Street life..... it has literally overtaken and overshadowed every 

aspect of my life, in every way, shape and form.

What I eat, when I eat, where I eat and how I eat.... when I sleep,

where I sleep, how I sleep; is all dictated by circumstance

not of my choosing... compounded so much more by the extremely

high rising costs of life in the state. And when you have little or no 

means to purchase that life....

the quality of life becomes non-existent. There is no quality of life

on the streets, you become the very landscape

around you, a movable fixture.

A fixture that breathes, absorbs, feels, and is witness to life, 

without being part of life. I have died a million times over living

on the streets, and died a different kind of death being forced to

live my life without a home and the challenges that pose just by forced

circumstance imposed by and through the illegal actions of a

despicable landlord forcing me out.