Loving on the people who need it most

When I drive to work in Kensington, I drive through some of the streets I walked when I was growing up. I pass kids going to school and adults heading to work. I see grandmoms sweeping their sidewalks. I watch groups hand out food to people in need. I see people experiencing homeless, often due to the disease of addiction. I see young people in their early twenties with baby faces pulling suitcases on wheels because they are living on the street. I watch community members become frustrated with what is happening in front of their homes and in their backyards. I get it. I wouldn’t want to live like that either – the hopelessness hitting you in the face day after day. There are times when I have to take a break and step back from the sadness there. I’m so lucky that I’m able to do that.

I often drive past people who are all alone, sitting on the sidewalk or walking down the street and I’m overcome with a feeling of profound sadness. Do they have someone to talk to? When is the last time someone told them “I love you?” When is the last time they got a hug? How do they sleep at night on these streets? Is their family looking for them?

If you do this kind of work, it’s so important to take a break and care for yourself. If you don’t take care of you first, then you won’t be able to do this amazing, heartbreaking, soul-filling, important, draining, love-filled, necessary work. Big props to all of you out there loving on people who need it most. ❤️