I was thinking about how exactly to get the knitting for the homeless project started. What do I need to do? What do I need to think about?
One of the things I have been noticing is that there are a lot of knitting for charity projects/charities out there. I have read several that use money and knitted items to help children (who are essentially poor), people who are very ill, and people who are in dire living situations.
So, why, do I see so little about homeless organizations? Why is it that the only people who get consideration are those who cannot help the situation they are in?
I have noticed that there is a commonly held idea about the homeless. It is that they brought it upon themselves. Perhaps they were too lazy to get a job, too fat, too slow... whatever. We Americans, and I can only speak of Americans... we don't want to help people when we think that whatever has happened to them is "thier own damn fault."
This, i think is the primary reason why I haven't seen people jumping up and down to help the homeless, but cancer patients and children in 3rd world countries have lots of sponsorships.
This makes sense, in our world. Our foolish, self important world.
When we help cancer patients, and believe me, I am not against helping them, we can feel a sense of altruism that we are making a difference. But why don't we feel the same about helping the homeless? Why do we only give at Christmas? Why do we only volunteer at soup kitchens on Thanksgiving? Don't homeless people eat 363 of the other days of the year?
Most importantly I think, is the idea no matter why they are homeless, how aweful they look or smell... or how nasty we percieve them to be... they are humans too.
THEY ARE NO DIFFERENT FROM US.
When we realize this... perhaps God can open our hearts, and we can begin to serve our friends and neighbors that we just didn't see before.
One of the things I have been noticing is that there are a lot of knitting for charity projects/charities out there. I have read several that use money and knitted items to help children (who are essentially poor), people who are very ill, and people who are in dire living situations.
So, why, do I see so little about homeless organizations? Why is it that the only people who get consideration are those who cannot help the situation they are in?
I have noticed that there is a commonly held idea about the homeless. It is that they brought it upon themselves. Perhaps they were too lazy to get a job, too fat, too slow... whatever. We Americans, and I can only speak of Americans... we don't want to help people when we think that whatever has happened to them is "thier own damn fault."
This, i think is the primary reason why I haven't seen people jumping up and down to help the homeless, but cancer patients and children in 3rd world countries have lots of sponsorships.
This makes sense, in our world. Our foolish, self important world.
When we help cancer patients, and believe me, I am not against helping them, we can feel a sense of altruism that we are making a difference. But why don't we feel the same about helping the homeless? Why do we only give at Christmas? Why do we only volunteer at soup kitchens on Thanksgiving? Don't homeless people eat 363 of the other days of the year?
Most importantly I think, is the idea no matter why they are homeless, how aweful they look or smell... or how nasty we percieve them to be... they are humans too.
THEY ARE NO DIFFERENT FROM US.
When we realize this... perhaps God can open our hearts, and we can begin to serve our friends and neighbors that we just didn't see before.
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