Part III Plight of the Homeless - Dallas/Fort Worth II

I have now arrived in the Fort Worth/Dallas area and am completely insane if that is the best way of putting it. I am completely delusional thinking that I need to walk and that is what I do...walk and walk and walk. I really don't have any idea why I walk when I am delusional I only know that there is a drive for me to walk. I start losing weight by the pounds because I am not eating either. What meager food that I am getting is coming out of the garbage that someone has thrown out. I am resembling one of the many homeless that you find on E. Lancaster Rd in Fort Worth.

I start my vigilant walk and then notice that there are some services that I can take advantage of at the Day Resource Center for Tarrant County. I am somewhat lucid that I can understand people and act shall we say normal, however, I have been off medication for a while. Does it come to me that I have missed my meds and the answer to this is NO. Instead, I start visiting the Union Gospel Mission, Salvation Army and the Day Resource Center. I observe the people and watch and see that some are doing this for a career while others are not.

I come across a young man that should be at the 10th floor of the JPS but he and I strike a friendship. I am able to relate to him and start speaking to him in great detail. The funny thing is that he is catatonic and doesn't move. I put a flower in his hand and lead him around for food and shelter. I in the meantime have the instincts for survival and continue between shelters and soup kitchens to maintain myself. But I am walking 10-15 miles each day and don't really know where I am going other than from Lancaster to Sundance Square and back. I am the one that you see picking up cigarette butts and smoking them. The one that is talking to no one around and even arguing with myself. No one cares and keeps their distance from me.

Now over a year later I wonder why did I do walk. What type of survival instinct kicked in and allowed me to walk and go to soup kitchens. Was I partially lucid or did something deep inside of me told me to continue no matter what. At one point it was getting so cold that I laid on a park bench shivering and wondering would I survive the night. For you see, the county only allows 3 nites a month to be spent in the shelters. Where you spend the other 27 nites is really up to you. In here is a message of compassion that I believe the people need to address. Where do we allow these people to stay in the cold and rain? Can we find an alternative other than sheltering them so that their housing can be taken care? You have to see E. Lancaster to understand how many people are waiting for a place to spend the nite and get some sort of food.

This poses another question also, "how can we as a society allow people to survive as homeless people?" I as many realize that resources are limited if not existent, but where is the compassion of the people? Where did we stray as people to allow our fellow man to go without food and shelter because they have fallen on bad luck? These are questions that I ask my fellow man. These are hard questions but I would like to digress a bit for an example. In all my walkings throughout the country I can count on one hand the amount of people that helped me out with food or a few dollars.

The one that is most vivid is in DC where I stopped to rest in front of Chinese fast food restaurant. Here the owner instead of pushing me away made motion was I hungry. He came out with a bowl of rice and cold water. The only request that he had was that I sit a bit farther from the entrance of the restaurant. This folks is compassion. This is the love for your fellow man. Can we all say that we would do the same next time you see someone that was in my condition to lend a helping hand?

Well I have digressed, but I wanted to make a point that my homelessness had made on me and I hope that it is making on others who read this post. Search deep in your hearts to see what you would do if you were in this predictament. East of the Mississippi, I came across only 5 people that would help out someone in that was in need. This is sad because the plight of the homeless is growing and still we are not addressing the problem. Are they homeless because of choice or are their circumstances ones that can be addressed. In my case, if a medical professional had seen me, would I still be walking the streets of Dallas/Fort Worth? Or would I have been swished to the 10th floor of JPS for an evaluation? Would the police, which I would encounter in a later post, evaluate me and bring to JPS? These are important questions that we are Fort Worthonians need to ask ourselves. How many can we help in Tarrant County and what is the best way to do so?

Thank you for reading and I hope that I have given you some food for thought.