eyes
So it's a little after the two-week mark since I have been done working in Chicago. It seems so much longer. How can the memories of something so amazing fade so fast? I hate the fact that memories fade. I wish God gave us the ability to remember everything we have ever done forever, so that when we wish, we can reach back into our memory and re-live those moments that made us happiest, taught us the most, and formed the person we are. I seem to always be looking ahead, but I wish I would stop and look back more often on all the experiences and people God has used to shape me and all those moments he spoke to me or showed me something. One thing from this summer that keeps coming back to me (to the point that it is annoying) is a poem we read while giving prayer tours of Chicago. It's called "Eyes", and despite the fact that I unwillingly memorized it after saying it week after week, I am half-heartedly glad I did. It's written by a homeless person in Chicago and was published in Streetwise, a newspaper sold by homeless licensed vendors. Part of each $1 spent on Streetwise goes back to the vendor so they can have a small income. So here it is...
Look me in the eyes at least,
when you pass me by on the street
whether or not you answer my plea for money:
my eyes are the poorest of me-
require only your two cents when we meet-
and are more in dire need of these than your feet.
my poor eyes! how they have spent the rent
trying to buy a pleasant remembrance
to throw up on my mind's screen when I finally tire
of going ungreeted, unseen.
I tell you what I want- what I feel
when you shuffle by behind your paper
trying to be discreet, sweating slightly
under your suit collar and looking down,
always down, as if I were your sin...
be absolved of the guilt trip! look at me!
make me a mint! shower me with riches!
give me a long look, and drown me in it!
dignity outlasts dollars.
There are 80,000 homeless people in Chicago in the course of a year and 15,000 on any given night. For those 15,000, there are only 6,500 shelter beds. 45% of homeless people are single men, but 40% are families with children. The saddest thing is that the average age of a homeless person in Chicago is only 9 years old. The leading causes are lack of affordable housing and the lack of decent jobs or a sufficinet income. It doesn't help that the city is tearing down all the projects.
nine... and homeless... can you even imagine?
Look me in the eyes at least,
when you pass me by on the street
whether or not you answer my plea for money:
my eyes are the poorest of me-
require only your two cents when we meet-
and are more in dire need of these than your feet.
my poor eyes! how they have spent the rent
trying to buy a pleasant remembrance
to throw up on my mind's screen when I finally tire
of going ungreeted, unseen.
I tell you what I want- what I feel
when you shuffle by behind your paper
trying to be discreet, sweating slightly
under your suit collar and looking down,
always down, as if I were your sin...
be absolved of the guilt trip! look at me!
make me a mint! shower me with riches!
give me a long look, and drown me in it!
dignity outlasts dollars.
There are 80,000 homeless people in Chicago in the course of a year and 15,000 on any given night. For those 15,000, there are only 6,500 shelter beds. 45% of homeless people are single men, but 40% are families with children. The saddest thing is that the average age of a homeless person in Chicago is only 9 years old. The leading causes are lack of affordable housing and the lack of decent jobs or a sufficinet income. It doesn't help that the city is tearing down all the projects.
nine... and homeless... can you even imagine?
posted by maria at 2:05 PM
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