What if you were homeless for a day?

I’ve lived in the Portland area almost my entire life. I love this city; the vibrancy and artistic hipster lifestyle is exciting and is the staple of this unique place. Despite all these amazing cultural aspects, there is a prevalent issue here. My early childhood memories include seeing homeless people standing on street corners in the pouring rain, grasping cardboard signs with sprawled sharpie reading “Homeless. Anything helps. God bless.” Now, I was watching this from behind the safety and comfort of my car window, and it was a hard concept to grasp at seven years old. The fact of the matter is that this sight is too common in Portland.

My parents exposed me to this situation in great ways as a kid. We have served dinner to homeless people, made hygiene kits, and donated our money in addition to our time. But even with all of this experience, there is still some distance between me and them.

A few months ago my aunt shared a woman’s story on Facebook (the link is below). This woman’s story fascinated me because she put herself into the shoes of a homeless person for one day. Her observations are not as much about the struggles one might imagine, but rather the lack of humanity that these people experience on the streets. Countless people will walk by someone sitting on the side of the road and not give them a sideways glance. Maybe they aren’t thinking about their lack of eye contact as contributing to the absence of humanity that homeless people experience. But this is the case, according to this woman’s first hand experience; this seemingly small detail changes everything. When she found an 82 year old woman sitting on a walker in front of a Whole Foods, she talked to her and touched her arm, moving the old woman to tears for the compassion that she hadn’t had in years.

Everyone has their story; some of the homeless in Portland are drug addicts, some are mentally ill, and some are lost and trying to find their way. Before assuming the worst of someone, make the conscious decision to see the best in people, despite our varying differences and situations. No one wants to be homeless. We need to respect everyone, regardless of where they are in life.

Obviously, we don’t all need to try being homeless. But I would encourage everyone to make an effort to show kindness to others. I recently was in SE Hawthorne, and I gave my leftovers to some homeless men sitting on the sidewalk. It didn’t mean that much to me, but it was clear that it meant a lot to them. Small, random acts of kindness make the world go round. My leftovers will not solve the problem of homelessness in Portland, but they will make a small difference in someone else’s life. If we all do something, big or small, whether it’s smiling at a stranger or giving away some leftovers or donating money to an organization. We can all do something.

The most important lessons learned from the Facebook post are as follows:

1. Be compassionate towards everyone you encounter, always.
2. We are all people, with our own stories, and we should never be too quick to pass judgement.
3. Do something.

-Samantha Sidline

If you want to read the original Facebook post (and I think you should!), check out this link: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10206173075358670&set=a.1054787822753.10463.1617551447&type=3&theater


Photograph: https://www.google.com/search?q=homeless+portland&safe=strict&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwieiZ2LmubJAhUUV2MKHRpFBQ4Q_AUICCgC&biw=1366&bih=667#safe=strict&tbm=isch&q=homeless+people&imgrc=-bRk7-nYqOjdaM%3A