Whether many of us would care to admit it or not, we've all been that person who has walked down Green Street with our heads down, pretending not to hear the rattling of spare change containers, as a voice pleads and begs for help. Often times I find myself seeing a student walk by a homeless person and not even acknowledge them, sometimes even smirking or mocking, and I think to myself, "How could they be so heartless?" But then I remember that I've been one of the people that have just walked on by with my head down, pretending nobody is there. I always thought that "I'm just a college kid, how am I supposed to be of any help to someone without a home? I have no money. I can barely pay for my education." Recently though, I've been stopped in my tracks. My $45,000 a year education is what I'm worried about paying for, when these people are only asking for any spare coins that I might have? I've caught myself feeling guilty that I'm on my way to go grab some lunch at Chipotle, and go for ice cream afterwards, and all these guys are asking for is even fifty cents and I have never once reached into my pocket. I've been in a Social Work class for six weeks, learning how to have a profession in helping people overcome their obstacles, and it's really played a big role in allowing me to see that there is many other ways I can help than giving from my pocket. I've learned that I can give my time and heart and get the same results. Recently, I've chose to do this by volunteering at Emmanuel Episcopal Church and helping out with their homeless sack lunch program. .
In choosing to do this, I wasn't aware of how many new perceptions and insights I would gain from the experience. Describing the experience in words is almost impossible task. The first day I woke up bright and early at 7:30 a.m. to get ready to catch a bus and head to the church. I found myself being nervous on the way over.
