Sunday, September 1, 2024

Temporary Street Closure...

 

Street Closure…



Nearly a quarter of a Century being forced to live

and merely exist on the exhaust of Humanity, on the

Periphery of life itself for decades before a door

finally cracks open and a temporary end to merely

existing finally comes about, then right back to

the grind of street life. Not a prospect to

look forward to, and I’m not.


Life on the streets is like being trapped and sucked

into a time warp, where the only thing that changes is

the weather, going from oven baking, blistering heat to

frigid temps and everything in between. Having no

place to go, where do you go?


Being forced to live on the streets is beyond

challenging; having to contend with how to live

and be without any of the things readily available,

but not accessible for people living on the streets,

that people take for granted, Laundry, Showers,

having a usable and accessible bathroom to do

your private business, eating, sleeping, finding

drinkable water, clothing, shelter….

The list is endless.


But like with anything in life, our bodies and

minds quickly adapt to whatever settings and

circumstances we find ourselves in, and it

becomes the Norm. And so common place, You

no longer think about the How's or the whys,

you just do and go about your business,

like it is something you have always done.


But when you live on the streets, your business

soon becomes everyone's business, regardless.

Your life and everything you do, everywhere

you go is always playing on the Public Movie

screen, where admission to the public is

always free, at our expense. No privacy,

no matter what private matters you

need to take care of.


And finally having a reprieve, albeit a

temporary one, is a Gift, and something

I am truly grateful for. But I find I am still

not able to let down my guard. My head

remains on constant swivel…


And as it unfolds more, giving me more breathing

space from life on the streets, I do not know if it

will make things easier or more challenging

when, in all likelihood, I will be forced to return

to the streets once the older gentleman I care

for and cleanup after has passed on to the

next life and his next journey. I do not

know how long my position caring

for him will last, a few days, weeks,

months perhaps…. Maybe longer?


Of course, there are pros and cons to the

position, pros and cons to everything in life,

but I try to count the blessings and positives,

though the cons do tend to greatly overshadow

the good and the blessings all around.


Focusing on the good is my goal.


Living on the streets takes a tremendously hard

toll on your body, your heart, mind and soul

in ways that are truly unimaginable.


The moment you find yourself on the street,

is the very moment you lose yourself, your

humanity and what it is and means to be

human. You immediately stop being treated

as a living, breathing being from others….

And become non-existent.


Becoming invisible in plain sight…