Introduction
The holiday season is truly a magical time. It is a time for relaxing, a time for families to come together, and a time for giving. While most celebrate in the comforts of their home, many do not think of the reality that on any given night in the United States, half a million people are homeless. Some sleep in shelters, others on the streets; roughly one-quarter of these people are children. Thousands of individuals around the world battle with the unrelenting realities of poverty, homelessness, and starvation every day. They experience this even on a holiday like Thanksgiving, where the principal thought of this day is to give thanks to the blessings of the harvest and loved ones. In our local community in the District of Columbia, the capital of the nation saw 11,623 people without permanent shelter last year on Thanksgiving weekend. This Thanksgiving, I was blessed with the ability and cognizance to …show more content…
People were so happy to be given a meal. I believe that they were grateful for more than just a meal. The individuals we passed bag lunches to appreciated that they were thought of during thanksgiving and were not forgotten. They seemed to enjoy the conversations that we initiated; many had interesting stories to tell. Everyone we encountered wanted us to know how gratified he or she was for my team and me to be there.
I recall this one man that I spoke to, Adam. We had a lengthy conversation that lasted long than any other person that I talked to. Adam told me a story of how he lost his job due to his mental illness. He suffers from schizophrenia, a mental disorder that caused him to experience hallucinations and paranoia. This caused him to live in constant fear. He thought that someone was out to get him. This affected his work. Adam was constantly living and fear and witnessing things that were not there, that he lost his
The holiday season is truly a magical time. It is a time for relaxing, a time for families to come together, and a time for giving. While most celebrate in the comforts of their home, many do not think of the reality that on any given night in the United States, half a million people are homeless. Some sleep in shelters, others on the streets; roughly one-quarter of these people are children. Thousands of individuals around the world battle with the unrelenting realities of poverty, homelessness, and starvation every day. They experience this even on a holiday like Thanksgiving, where the principal thought of this day is to give thanks to the blessings of the harvest and loved ones. In our local community in the District of Columbia, the capital of the nation saw 11,623 people without permanent shelter last year on Thanksgiving weekend. This Thanksgiving, I was blessed with the ability and cognizance to …show more content…
People were so happy to be given a meal. I believe that they were grateful for more than just a meal. The individuals we passed bag lunches to appreciated that they were thought of during thanksgiving and were not forgotten. They seemed to enjoy the conversations that we initiated; many had interesting stories to tell. Everyone we encountered wanted us to know how gratified he or she was for my team and me to be there.
I recall this one man that I spoke to, Adam. We had a lengthy conversation that lasted long than any other person that I talked to. Adam told me a story of how he lost his job due to his mental illness. He suffers from schizophrenia, a mental disorder that caused him to experience hallucinations and paranoia. This caused him to live in constant fear. He thought that someone was out to get him. This affected his work. Adam was constantly living and fear and witnessing things that were not there, that he lost his