Hero's

Hero's On the Streets....

You encounter all walks of life on the street.... when you live on the streets;

you notice more, experience more, witness more than most people ever will in their lives.

A Tale of Two Cities comes to mind… “It was the Best of Times, It was the Worst of Times...”…

But when you live on the streets, the best is no longer available to you. And it becomes

much more than a “Tale of Two Cities...”… it becomes numerous cities, too many to count,

and where there is a never-ending stream of Tales to tell; tales that devastate,

mesmerize, lift, brighten, and shatter your life in so many ways.

I've found that when you really need something, it is those living on the streets

that are willing to share and help however they can. The ones who experience

life on the barest fringes of living are the most helpful and giving.

Hero's, everyday folks, living without a home. Some of the truest hero's you will ever meet.

Life is not supposed to be defeating.... it's meant to uplift and inspire. But when you live

on the Streets, life pummels you to a pulp, pummeling the very life out of you.

That is where the true hero's shine through. People who can really relate to the Blessings and

Challenges one faces without a home.... without a place to get much needed rest.... but rather,

nights that are continually disturbed, having no place to store, prepare or cook meals,

having absolutely no privacy at any point when you have no home.

When you are fully present, but invisible to the Main Streams of Society... you learn the

fine art of disappearing in plain sight. And it becomes the Homeless's super powers.

Blending into the Scenery so well, we become part of the landscape and are

no longer seen as living, feeling, breathing beings.

Homeless know where other Homeless are...

but we are non-existent to the masses.

And thereby, unseen, disappearing in plain sight.

Becoming witnesses of everything; Some good, a whole lot of bad, and 

everything in between is what you experience living on the streets… that holds for

Law Enforcement, as well. You will experience some good, some truly bad,

and a lot of everything in between. How they act and respond toward you

tells you a whole lot of who they are as a person.

And a few select individuals in Law Enforcement become Hero's to those of us on the streets.

I have experienced a few of these Hero's in Law Enforcement, very few, to be sure,

but a few nonetheless, who have made life, my life, on the streets much more

tolerable by paying for services and products that I could not have afforded or

taken care of otherwise. Things that help to get me on my way. And when you are 

forced into a circumstance not of your choosing, and have limited or no income, 

getting even the necessary things for everyday living; soap, shampoo, food, 

clothing, bedding… fuel, supplies, things most people take for granted, 

that are not readily available to you when you have no home

and need to get these items, and find some way to carry them, day-in, day-out 

to use wherever you go, because you never know where you will be 

from one moment from the next.

Every once in while you will encounter a Hero that takes the time to listen and offer 

whatever support they are able to. Perhaps that is just to take the time to greet you 

with a “Hi, how are you?” and actually mean it and want to hear your answer.

They take the time to understand how you came to live without a home, 

and especially living without a home for so long.

So here’s to all the Hero’s who bring Humanity to the forefront.

They lift the ceaseless shadows for a brief moment, allow the

light to filter through the darkness.

Birthday Reflections...

Birthday Notes to Myself....

Reflections of Life on the Streets

Another birthday on the streets…. Blending into just another day,

like any other… and a replica of the past 18 I have experienced

on the streets, outside, without a home.

August 15….

Birthdays, like Holidays, have never really held any meaning.

Especially when you have no one to share them with, and each and

every one of them are outside, by yourself, and there is nothing

memorable about them. It’s just another day on the streets,

and a day that is easily forgettable.

My 18^th Birthday on the streets. And an 18^th Birthday is supposed to

reflect and show that you have become an adult and are now afforded

more of what life offers, while you take on increasing responsibility.

An 18^th Birthday is a Milestone and Turning Point in a person's life.

You are given the gift of becoming a contributing member of society, while

being allowed and expected to do your Civic Duties that are imposed on you

whether you want it or not; like being served to Jury Duty, voting

(which is a moot point, as votes are as worthless as expecting to 
grow rich by throwing money in the trash, and discarded while the 
Governments do whatever they choose, regardless).

In essence, you are legally liable for your actions, and for your life...

how you act, respond, and present yourself.

But this isn't that kind of birthday. Yes, it is my 18^th birthday,

Living on the Streets, without a permanent residence, but not my

true 18^th Birthday in Life.

I have long since passed that boundary of restriction to more freedom,

many times over. But an 18^th Birthday.... living, breathing and feeling

every moment on the streets.

Rights that are guaranteed with our birth and the age of which our Civic

Duties take hold, are rights that are taken away from you and denied

when you have no “Verifiable Physical Residence” to prove you live in the

right place, and have citizenship, not to mention required to have

Utility Statements and Phone Bills going to the

Physical Address in your name.

Our rights to Vote DENIED because they require a

“Verifiable Physical Residence”, which is highly Unconstitutional.

Our basic rights of a HUMAN BEING; the Rights to Shelter, Food, and

Clothing are nothing more than words without meaning when you

have no H O M E; no place to store, prepare or cook food, no truly

SAFE place to sleep without being disturbed throughout the

nights just for being present, having absolutely no privacy at all.

We are denied checkout privileges from the library because they have

now imposed different “RULES” about who they allow to check out

materials, and who they do not. Now in order to obtain or renew

your library card, you have to prove you have a

“Verifiable Physical Residence” where a Utility Bill and Phone Bill and

Bank Statements go to a PHYSICAL RESIDENCE in your name.

Something you cannot provide, because you do not have

when you have no home.

When I signed up for the Library Card, that “Rule” was not in place,

and therefore I was able to obtain a Library Card. But they refuse to

allow me to renew it. My circumstance remains the same as when I signed up,

but now, not allowed to check out materials due to my circumstance.

Another Unconstitutional right denied and taken away.

But I continue to have DREAMS.... and a Continuation of Birthday Wishes....

I have DREAMS of a Life of Magic... A life that truly matters and

makes not only a positive difference in others' lives, but makes

a Beautiful IMPACT, the World over.

But when dreams and reality remain the same...

Dreams become just a continuation of waking LIFE. Life on the streets.

There is no separation. Having no place to go, nowhere to go or any place

to just BE....is NOT how I dreamed of life, my life, would be. And having

to live without a home is no way to live, when your life is barely existent.

I've survived and lived through things you cannot even imagine.

The horrible, ever-present theme of my life.... being continually denied

and refused any and all assistance.... and being denied my very identity

right from birth. Denied and refused my Birth right, my Heritage,

My Blood Type, who my birth parents were/are. Why I was given up.

Denied and refused any and all identifying information of who

I was or where I came from.

These are not the DREAMS I had ….

I had dreams of Presence.... Dreams of becoming a Detective

to help others, Dreams of making a difference in other people's lives....

Dreams of making the world a much better place for all.

I had DREAMS of a LIFE that MATTERED.

And those dreams did not include spending my Birthdays in 
oven baking temperatures of 100*+ Degrees, but my birthday will be one

of the hottest days of the year, and not in a good way kind of hot.

But spending yet another Birthday on the streets.... my 18^th Birthday

on the streets, those dreams evaporated... like steam rising from the heat.

Heading into my 19^th year Anniversary of living on the streets, life

without a home and facing my 20^th Holiday and

Winter Season on the streets.

As Each passing birthday holds less appeal than the last.

Dreams now are no more than more of life on the streets...

I can no longer dream about what no longer exists; a real HOME,

a place of my OWN, a place to BE without the constant threat of

being disturbed and having the cops called on me just for the very

fact of having no place to go.

Reflecting back and it brings me right back to the very present.

Happy Birthday, to me....

A Life From the Streets.