This past Monday was the last Room in the Inn night at church until December. I have been dreading this day for weeks. The weather is getting nicer, but that doesn't mean that everyone suddenly finds housing.
This past year has been such a blessing and yet so difficult. I was unable to be there for 3 nights out of the four months of Mondays. I was away for each and it killed me a little each time.
Throughout the 4 months I met so many beautiful people. There were some people that I had met last year that were back and that broke my heart. Every single week I knew at least one person from a previous week. It was always nice to know that they were safe, and yet sad that they still needed the service.
I met single moms, teenage boys, families, young ladies, older gentlemen, toddlers, older ladies, kids in school, young men. I met people of all ages and races. I met people who have been homeless for years and people who have only been homeless for a short time. I met people with jobs and people going back to school in order to find a new job. I met people who are stuck in a vicious cycle that they can't seem to break out of. It weighs heavy on my heart.
Every week I tried to bring something that someone could use. Sometimes it was t-shirts. Sometimes it was shoes. Sometimes it was nail polish. Mostly it was bags. Hello my name is Jennie and I am a bag lady. I have a very large collection of bags. I still have more than I need, but I was able to provide some every week.
Imagine having to carry around everything you own with you at all times? Some people do have storage units, but they still need to carry around their clothes. It's hard to grasp at times. I was super excited to donate two large duffle bags with wheels. They were snatched up immediately. The first week I brought one a single mom with a toddler grabbed it. She pushes around a stroller all day and had bags digging into her shoulder.
This year on the night that I spent the night I needed to call 911 in the morning. One of the ladies dislocated her shoulder. It was so painful to look at. I honestly don't know how she wasn't screaming in pain. The paramedics came and took her to the hospital. All I kept thinking about was that even after they pop it back in she is going to be in so much pain carrying her bags. I was hoping that I would see her again just so that I would know that she was okay, but I did not.
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There are so many jobs needed each week. The beds need to be made. The dinner needs to be cooked. The guests need to be picked up. Breakfast needs to be cooked. People need to sleep over with the guests. Someone needs to clean up in the morning. There is a rotation of volunteers from different churches for each role. I signed up for some, but mostly my role was to visit with our guests. Each week I made it my mission to smile and laugh with as many guests as possible. So many times people would come over to the table where I was sitting commenting that my table was having "too much fun" and asked to join. Some people told me that they hadn't laughed like that in a long long time. That would make me go home and cry.
I never struggled with a topic: family, food, sports, music, school, and travel. Some people didn't want to talk and that is fine. Some people took several visits to warm up.
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Every week someone new occupied my heart and thoughts. On our last night I met an older gentleman from East Africa who has been blind since 1998. My heart literally hurt the first moment I saw someone leading him in. I sat with him at dinner and we talked a lot. We talked about his family who are scattered all around the globe. We talked about all of the countries he has visited. We talked about food that he ate in Africa. We talked about devices he has to help him count money and cross streets. We talked about when he lost his vision and how he was an electrical engineer before that.
I wrote down his prayer request for him and it was for someone to help him. Someone to drive him places and cook for him. When I came back from the prayer service he was already asleep and I didn't get to say goodbye. I didn't sleep that much that night.
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When our guests arrived at the beginning of the night I asked Ms. Cheri what the protocol was about giving out our personal information. Knowing that it was our last night until December was hurting my heart. One of our guests was back and she had been weighing heavily on my mind since I first met her. Ms. Cheri said that it was up to us if we wanted to give out information, but to just be careful as sometimes it can get abused.
I had a piece of paper with my contact information burning a hole in my pocket all night. I was torn over what to do.
A few weeks before we met Ms. T who is transgender. Her joy and faith in God just overwhelmed me. We sang together in church. We prayed together. We hugged and laughed. And I had thought about her every single day since. While we certainly live in a much more open world than we used to, there is still a lot of fear and hate out there. Not to mention the horrible bill that NC just passed regarding blocking protections to LGBT. I worry about her safety every single day.
Before the service started I was talking with a pastor who asked if I came every week. When I confirmed that I did he told me that I was doing some of God's most important work. "These are the people Jesus spent time with." I knew right then and there that I would give her my number. I could not live with myself if something happened to her because she had nowhere to turn. I can't imagine Jesus wanting me to walk away.
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Every week we were thanked for being there. Every week someone said they were blessed because of us. No, we were blessed to be there. Their prayers, faith, and trust in God is awe inspiring. It would be so easy to feel abandoned and yet they don't.
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As you can imagine, politics was a very hot topic every Monday. Considering we voted on a Tuesday Room in the Inn was weighing heavily as I voted. I think everyone should volunteer at a soup kitchen or shelter before going to vote.
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It's going to be a long 8 months until we start up again. I will need to find a way to help in some other way until then.
“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
-Matthew 25:40
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