For those with no home

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I see you. If I am honest with myself, I could be you. Had I been handed a different set of circumstances, had my brain made a different set of neural connections during childhood that I was not afforded the opportunity to challenge. Without a space of acceptance and unconditional love I may have been you.

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“Here is what we seek: a compassion that can stand in awe at what the poor have to carry rather than stand in judgment at how they carry it.” - Father Gregory Boyle

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I see you. If I am honest with myself, I could be you. I will not sell all of my things and bring you the profits, but I can look you in the eye. I am frightened by the weight of your need, by the smell of your clothes and your breath. I am frightened by your circumstance as it begs me to consider my own. I blame you because it hurts to look at me.

I fear you because you display parts of me I'd rather not see. I fear you because it appears you have nothing to lose and I can't afford to have you pull at the thread of my security lest it all unravel in the blink of an eye.

I see you. I fear you because I could be you. What if the world thought I didn't know how? What if the world thought I hadn't tried? What if the world saw me cry? What if I needed help? What if I was honest about the grief I feel for all the loss? What if I said the things that I'm ashamed of out loud?

What if I wore my humanity, my imperfection, as unapologetically as you do? Who would I be?

Truth is, I could have been you - and you could have been me.