April has been a bit of a marathon so far, so I'm going to get straight to my top story.
My story starts with a question...
When was the last time you gave money to someone on the street?
Wait...that was an assumption.
Do you ever give money to people on the street?
When was the last time you gave someone on the street money?
My answer is - tonight.
I was walking home through Uptown Waterloo and had stopped to read a menu on a store front wall. I noticed a young man, probably about my age, with a dog, sitting on the street corner. He was wearing a denim jacket and blue sweat pants. He had a cardboard sign.
I looked in my wallet to see what kind of change I had. And like any good middle class student would have it, I was straight out of loonies and toonies - I only had $20 bills. New ones. Fresh from the bank machine.
I said hello and asked "who's this?" as I leaned over to pet the black lab. They do have my heart after all. Josh told me that he's had Rasta for four years. He's been on and off of the streets for about that time too. He's a 26 year old, who no longer uses, and is a framer by trade who has a had a slow winter. He told me about his life in California and how he's waiting to hear about an apartment approval tomorrow. We continue to chit chat. I then lean over and ask, "do you have change for a $20?" Obviously we share a laugh and I gave Josh the bill. He is gracious. I insisted and tried to convince him it is my pleasure.
Rick then walks over to join us on the street corner. Josh and I had been sitting for a while. Rick and Josh have a connection already - Rick has recently broken off his marriage. I asked him what happened, and they asked me how much time I had! It was Rick's birthday after all, we didn't want to spend the last 10 minutes of his 26th birthday talking about her.
Rick tells me about the time he broke some dude's arms because the dude touched his sister. No one touches his family. And he was sentenced to 18 months in dc incarceration. Something I know nothing about. Rick educates me. He tells me that life in jail leads you to two things - 1. working out 2. getting into trouble. So Rick got into reading. He got out in 10.
Rick needs 75 cents for something, so I give him a birthday dollah. He asks me what I do. I tell him that I'm a grad student at waterloo studying recreation and leisure. He asks if I'm studying to be a gym teacher. I tell him no, but I thank him for his stereotype. I tell him I'm into summer camp. I'm into safe places for kids. And learning. Rick then tells me he's always meant to work at camps. I tell him its not too late. He then tells me about a volunteer opportunity he has running workshops on health.
He wants to be a guidance counselor one day.
For now, to pay the bills, Rick is a mechanic. Funny - I had just been telling Josh if he was good with his hands, he might like being a mechanic. We even brainstormed other jobs he might like. Transferable skills! He's got them...he's just never 'framed' his skills like that.
Josh had a sign that said "No Food" presented in a pretty artistic way. Those sharpie markers and cardboard can create magic together I tells ya. I suggest that Josh might also like getting into web design. As we were all getting up to go our seperate ways, Josh said I could keep the sign. He figures he won't need it.
Josh, Rick and I had created community.
I shared a human experience with other people. And I believed. I believed in someone. I believed in some thing. I reached out, and I believed in community.
The common built unity.
So, I'm wondering...what do you give?
What do you build?
http://healthycommunities.uwaterloo.ca/
Today's Key Note Speaker, Dr. Trevor Hancock spoke about how really - everything about what we do should be human centered. After all, its about the people, stupid.
~ this was Dr. Hancock's clever title to his key note address this afternoon.
hannah banana
