I am Homeless.

 

I saw him on the street this morning, he was a local homeless.   Big Red I believe they called him.  I’ve been next to him in the coffee shop, he stinks.  He is quiet and I’ve never heard him talk out loud to nobody.  I’ve never heard him talk.  Not even walking down the street by himself.   I ignore him as we walk by.  And I try not to think of him.  I am unsuccessful as my thoughts go to the economy and how many more are going homeless.  I was just in a Real Estate Training seminar and was told about one in our group that was sleeping in his car only 12 months ago before he started doing real estate as an investor.  I remember the movie with Will Smith; called ‘Happyness’.  He had his challenges of being homeless and conquered them with nobody knowing his homeless state, onto his dreams and becoming very successful.  What’s Big Red’s story?  What’s the story about the ones you see on the side of the road holding the sign?  Sure our conceptions of laziness, drug addiction and alcoholism may be accurate at times.  Then also, we even know people with real jobs and decent responsibilities that are the same.  What’s the difference and how did they get there?  I knew one homeless guy who loved his life; had a sense of freedom in the lack of any responsibilities, even had a girlfriend once and  the question of being asked where he was he was debilitating to him.   His freedom was more complete with no one to answer to.  He did not sleep in his cardboard box with her anymore.  Is it a state of mind?;  True freedom?  Or shall we judge by the smile on ones face?  I don’t often see that, so maybe the real homeless are those that are worn down, beat by life, lost hope and not having any fun.  No ‘Happyness’ here…..the many by chance homeless may not be struggling with a vision of a better tomorrow, they are just saying alive.  Their day to day life is a struggle, so some are homeless by choice and some by circumstance.  How do I know this?  I have chosen temporary homelessness and still smile.  Big Red does not.