Hope

My Life, my Truth, my Hope An account written by a resident of Little Sisters Project Hope Homeless. The word conjures up a myriad of opinions and images. Society draws a picture of homelessness that depicts men and women with haunting looks, dirty clothing and foul language. We say they are a nuisance, lazy, hopeless alcoholics and drug addicts. We've stepped over them, crossed the street to avoid them, and looked away pretending not to see them. We whisper about them, judge them and condemn them. For the most part, society pretends these people are not there. We 'ye closed our minds and turned our backs, hoping that if we didn't acknowledge their existence, eventually they would cease to exist.

I am one of those people. My children are those people. We are Homeless.

Homelessness knows no boundaries. It transcends age, sex, ethnicity and social standing. It can affect you quickly, quietly and at anytime. You wake up one day and realize you are one of them. You're out there alone.

Your life begins to change. It happens very subtly. Your self-respect is stripped away layer by layer. Your pride has been swallowed so much that eventually you forget what it is and why it was so important. Your self-worth is slowly diminished and depleted until you cease to exist in society. You cease to exist to yourself

I see the pain behind my children 's eyes. The sparkle that belongs to youth is gone. I see the embarrassment on their faces when asked to play at a friends home. They decline because they can 't reciprocate the invitation. I hear the hurt in their forced laughter when other kids unknowingly joke about the homeless. They struggle to keep their secret hidden. They carry a burden no child should have to carry.

Yet, this is our life, and we are those people.

But there are those who don't turn their backs. Instead they open their door and say, "Come in. You 're welcomed here." They open their arms and say, "We'll hold you for a while." They open their eyes and their hearts and say, "We see you, whole, complete, and special in your own right. You matter to us."

At Project Hope you no longer cease to exist. Little Sisters took us in when no one else
would. They reminded me that I do matter. Little Sisters reignited my flame of existence.
We are homeless, but not helpless. We live in hope. We love in hope. We are Hope
Projected.