In an article written in Philadelphia, PA,  a homeless man writes about his perspective of the hardships of being homeless.  He goes on to say that homelessness is much more than not having a place to live, rather the issue is most likely deeper. Overcoming the hardship of homelessness is not as simple as some might think. When someone has reached this kind of low in their lives, it takes much more confidence to rise up and see a hope in one’s future. One Step Away is a small newspaper that is produced and sold by homeless people.

As soon as I read this, it reminded me of Street News that I read about in Grand Central Winter. After selling the newspaper, he realized he had a job and a new stable foundation to only grow from.  he said that even though people might not think that selling a newspaper could give you any new skills, but he has learned much in customer service, promotion, and more. He ended his article by thanking his audience and to those who have displayed random acts of kindness.

Reading articles and books from the perspective of the homeless continues to blow me away. How genuine, kind, and full of life some people can be when they have so little, is amazing. From my internship to observing people going about their daily lives, it is hard to see genuine optimism and love of life. Yet, for the people who have so much, nothing ever seems good enough. Why is society like this? What are we doing wrong? Who instilled this thought process in us? All I know is that this course has opened me up to a new kind of compassion, willingness to help, and outlook for others well being. I hope to be more like the man who wrote this article. If that were the case, the world would be a much better place.

http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/one_step_away/Homelessness-can-run-deep.html