Day 263

Before leaving town for the week I stopped by SafeHouse - I know I'm always here, but it's not just my favorite place to volunteer, it's also my favorite place to just hang out and for a couple of hours leave behind some of the not so fun parts of life.

I had a lot of different conversations today. It started off with ways to get rid of a cough/cold - mine has decided to get worse and people were sharing ways that I can start to feel better - the two most popular remedies: theraflu and green tea.

I spoke to someone newish today - we've met before but had yet to have a conversation. He shared how he came to Atlanta and how he ended up on the streets, he talked about being burned out with school and work. In another conversation, education was the topic - specifically grad school and the number of years people spend in school. One lady who was off the streets for a couple of months is now back on the streets and we talked about different housing options. I haven't had a chance to ask her what happened with her previous living arrangements, maybe she'll share that next time we have a conversation alone.

I had a couple of quick conversations to check in with some people, hopefully I'll get to talk to them longer next time!
Be back in a few days :)

Day 262

There was no service at SafeHouse this evening, so I went on to freerice.com and donated 2100grains of rice while learning Italian - email is l'email - it's really simple.

Try it out, have some fun, and give while you do all that!
Happy giving!

Day 261

I sat with a new group of people at SafeHouse this evening. They were fun! I talked to a lady about her kids and being away from them. We talked a little about what brought her to Atlanta. Once others joined our circle though we switched conversations. Hoping to hear more from her next time we get to chat alone.

Conversations in our circle went from my horrible fantasy football team this week, to bets on the Falcons Eagles game, how our thoughts lead to actions, and aromatherapy and incense.

By 7pm the group scheduled to serve tonight did not show up so, unfortunately, there was no meal or service. As people left, several of us cleaned up the lot and put away chairs. I hung out for a little with the other volunteers and had some great conversation. Looking forward to being back tomorrow!

Day 260

It has been one of the most difficult days for some of the people I care about and for myself. I really didn't think I would make it out to volunteer but I know that this is no longer just my project and I can't drop the ball now. So today's giving was for the friends and family who have been there every step of the way...

I got to SafeHouse early and there were just a handful of people on the lot. I spent the entire evening sitting in a group with some awesome volunteers and amazing SafeHouse regulars. We talked about so many different things and really just enjoyed the pleasant weather and great company. Conversations included chocolate and cookies, recycling, the personality of inanimate objects, mental illness, business ideas, and the usual joking around.

I ended the night with quick conversations with some familiar faces and then cleaning up the lot and the street with my cleaning partner. He and I talked about music and brainwashing as we cleaned up. He has some interesting views on certain types of music.

Even though I go there as a volunteer, today they gave me more than I gave them. Thank you for the laughter, it gives me what I need to keep going.

Day 259

Sidewalk Graffiti on the lot

Finally back at SafeHouse!! It's been a bit of a stressful day and I was worried that I wouldn't be able to focus on the conversations today. But once I got there, all the stress from the day kinda took a back seat.

I walked on to a lot filled with cars and people, it was a little overwhelming. But I saw the familiar faces and just started at the gate with greeting people. I made my way further in and had a great catch up conversation with one gentleman. We talked about giving, meditation, my upcoming retreat, and our comfort with silence. He's a favorite to talk to and I'm glad I got to talk to him for a while.

I then went on to one of my promised conversations from yesterday. This gentleman shared his troubles with me and then told me how he fixed them or planned to fix them. We talked about life and laughing and why the latter is so important.

Once service started I sat with a group of people and just listened. They were sharing gossip about the different relationships people are in, they shared stories of different people walking by, and just hung out. It was a little cold today so I took some sweaters with me and handed out a few to anyone who needed one.

Before I left for the evening I had a conversation with one gentleman who was a little down and shared with me that he was disappointed with himself and how sometimes he didn't think he was making progress in getting off the streets. He shared that he is currently in grad school - I was very impressed and told him how proud I am of him. We talked about setting goals and taking the little steps to get to those goals, and that sometimes we take a wrong step, but you don't give up, you just take a step back and try again.

Before I really left for the evening, I saw the gentleman who I always clean up with. So we walked around and cleaned the lot and street together, while also catching up on each others lives. He is doing well, just as positive as always, and still smiling - he's a joy to spend time with!

Looking forward to tomorrow :)

Day 258

SafeHouse was closed this evening. I haven't been able to go all week and I really wanted to stop by to see some of the familiar faces, so I ended up going anyways. Before I got there I stopped to get water and 30 burgers. Initially the idea was to walk around the city to hand out the burgers. But a lot of people didn't know there was no service and ended up walking by SafeHouse. So I was able to hang out close by and just hand out food.

One of the guys shared childhood stories. There were conversations about the weather and people getting prepared for the cold. I got to catch up with some of the guys and have conversations promised for tomorrow :)

Hoping for my normal amount of energy tomorrow cos there are going to be lots of conversations!

Day 257

Between work, evening meetings, and feeling a little under the weather, I used care2.com for my official giving.

I say official because Dona and I gave back in a different way today. We are working with Project Live Love to help with their Quarterly Live Love event - October 8th. We volunteered at their event in July and this time stepped up to lead a project. There's much work to do and we are really excited to be a part of it. If you'd like to join in the fun this time be sure to visit their site and register (there are a limited number of spots left).


On care2 I went through the click to donate section. I also signed petitions:

• to help end hunger for Hunger Action Month
• to keep our drinking water safe
• to end child trafficking in the US
• and to help end animal cruelty

The last thing I did today was help a fellow Giver with a special blog he is working on. Over the 9/11 weekend two families, of middle eastern descent, in his community were victims of vandalism. He has asked people to share comments with those families to make sure they know that they are a part of this community and that most people do not condemn them for the horrible 9/11 crimes. Check out his blog and please leave a comment for the victims: http://resolvetogive.wordpress.com/2011/09/13/post-christmas-resolution-day-263-%E2%80%93-in-support-of-each-other-please-comment/