A Special Seasons Greetings

       It seems that almost everyone is getting into the Christmas Spirit. Although it is freezing at six in the morning volunteers and homeless individuals are showing up just the same. Smiles and friendly greetings are being passed from one person to the next.

       Last week there were two women had arrived a little earlier than those with the food to set up tables covered in red table clothes and dotted with Christmas cards. These two women had brought numerous cards, all with different pictures of snowmen, Christmas trees, brightly wrapped presents, beautiful red birds, the list could continue on for quite some time. They had brought these cards for individuals to send to a friend or loved one. Not only could someone take the card to give to someone, but they could also sign one, wrote a note and address an envelope and the women provided stamps to send them out. It was a very simple act of kindness, and i know it didn’t go unnoticed.

      

      Do you remember what it was like as a child when your mother handed you a small envelope that had your name on it? I remember how excited I would get, I got mail! Just like the grownups I had received something, someone had thought enough to take the time to scribble a note and get it to the mail man to have it delivered especially to Me at My house! It was wonderful. (Now I sigh each time I go to the mailbox. Now that nothing but bills and unwanted ads makes it to me with my name on it....somehow. Hardly ever do I receive a special note, a card that was sent from a friend or loved one.)

       Being recognized and seeing that you were thought of is something that can put a smile on any ones face. It can brighten your day to know someone took a few minutes out of their day to make you feel special. Just the same, it feels great to be able to send that card. To be able to write down a few words of love, some words of encouragement, a simple hello, I thought of you today, can make you feel just as good. When we write things down they seem more real, they are on paper. When we can write to someone and know they are going to receive that little note it can brighten our day as the sender as well.

       Those two women realize that that is an important thing in life that is too often taken for granted. To give these people an opportunity to take a few moments of their time to recognize someone else and know that they are able to let them know they are thought of makes them feel special too. I bet those women don’t even know the impact they had on some of the lives of the people around them that Saturday. They touched mine, although i didn’t send a card, I definitely appreciated their time, thought, expense and effort. To you two wonderful women; Kudos, and Thank you!

A Day of Thanksgiving

        Thanksgiving, a day where family and friends gather and eatmore than they need, and talk more than most want. It is a time to be thankful for what we have, expresses our thanks, and share it with others. A Typical family wakes up to the smell of mouthwatering food that the mother, maybe even the father, has been preparing. They get out of their warm bed and cozy up on the couch with their blankets, TV, and their family while they wait for the great feast to be prepared. If they are hosting a large group at their home they may get all dressed up and wait to enjoy a hearty meal, warm conversation and laughter, and smiles in their comfortable decorated home. After the family members and friends go their own way with Tupperware’s full of left overs, the dogs are fed what wasn’t wanted and what is put in the fridge will eventually make it into the garbage can.

       Some leave the warmth of their home dedicated to help others have a great Thanksgiving Day. These many needed and appreciated volunteers spend time on their day off, their holiday to help others. Some may help at a shelter, a church. some may take food to a family they know is in need, or take a few plates of the left overs from their family meal to the few homeless individuals they passed on their way to the store to get the cranberry sauce they had forgotten the day before.

       For thousands their version of Thanksgiving was much different, one they and countless others share. If they did not find a shelter or warm place to lay their heads the night before they wake up from an unfulfilling night of sleep to freezing temperatures around them. The wind whips and the cold bites at their face until they reluctantly get up and try in vain to warm themselves. If they decide to go to a shelter serving a thanksgiving meal they stand in lines that can take hours while they wait in the cold. Friendly faces of volunteers dole out their food and move them along. They may sit next to other they know and have a conversation about the holidays or their grandmothers pumpkin pie they miss. After their meal they return back outside to the cold to find somewhere else to hide from the wind. If they didn’t chose to have a warm meal provided by shelters and other community organizations they stand on the street asking for change from the families on their way to their Thanksgiving destination. Once they have received the amount they are happy with they leave the street to spend the money they got from others on whatever they decide. Some spend it on a warm sandwich, a pair of gloves, or a glass of milk. While others may spend it on things that keep them on the street, things that they are addicted to, things that they try to avoid their situation with. Whatever the case it is a completely different experience than many of us do on that wonderful Thanksgivings day.

       Whichever way you spent your Thanksgiving I hope you remembered to be thankful. I hope you didn’t take for granted the ones who prepared the meal you ate, whether it be at home or at a shelter. I hope you showed love and kindness to those around you, whether it be volunteers or distant family relatives. I hope you remembered that there are always people out there struggling, whether you are yourself or not. I hope you remembered that it could always be worse, and that if you want you can work to make it better for you. I hope you remembered it was Thanksgiving, a day to be thankful.

Here's to Weathering

      

       The weather has been wonderful this week, in my eyes at least. I love the rain; I love the clouds, the wind and the cold. When i stepped out of my warm vehicle into the cold wet rain on Wednesday I felt like a kid again, wanting to run and jump into the first puddle I could get my feet into. I knew I would enjoy standing in the rain as i dished out bowls of soup, but I didn’t know what to expect from those waiting in the line wet and hungry. I thought there might be some hostility, some hatred and bitterness towards the cold. But, I didn’t hear any one complain about the weather. We all seemed to be enjoying out first storm of the season together, warm bowls of soup and hot tea in hand we continued on like it was any other day as the lightning lit up the sky around us. 

        As nice as the weather was to stand out in and watch the rain drops bring a new look to the dry desert around us, I realized I wouldn’t want to stand out in it all day. I loved being able to turn my heater on and warm up my feet on the drive back to my warm dry house. I realize that my love of the rain is in big part to the fact that i do not have to be in it, it is an option for me. However, for those numerous people that might not have an escape from the cold I had anticipated the opposite from their point of view, but they seemed to enjoy it as much as I did.

       It’s an easy thing to take what you have for granted on a daily basis. It’s easy to enjoy the rain storms and lightning from behind the windows of our heater blasting living rooms. Life and the many things we have in it are precious; our loved ones, our homes, our blankets, and our fuzzy socks. So, this week as we watch the wandering dark clouds that bring us that smell of the clean rain let remember to be happy for the many things we have.

Abriana Foster wrote on her expereince of volunteering with Soup and a Smile.

       The most amazing experience in the world is giving back to the community. Last Saturday, I was given the opportunity to feed the homeless with Phi Theta Kappa the honor society. Most people have forgotten that blessings are not materialistic in nature – they are simple and rare in our current society. Offering people sugar and cups for their coffee made me realize how fortunate I was to have the friends, family, and the place that I live in. It helped me to understand that it is best to appreciate what we do have and no matter how difficult things may become that it is necessary to have a great heart and to constantly give back to your community. I challenge everyone to pass on these beliefs so that the world can become a better place.

The Joy of Volunteering

     

        It’s a wide variety of volunteers we see every day at the Las Vegas catholic worker. You have the old and the young. There are grandparents, mothers, fathers, children, brothers and sisters, all types of family members. There are Students from CSN, UNLV, differing high schools, middle schools, and once in a while those in elementary. There are many different organizations, churches, charities, and service groups. There are bankers, retired principles, union workers, teachers, chefs, entrepreneurs, and even the domesticate housewives. There are volunteers from all walks of life, and it is apparent in their mannerisms, characteristics, vocabulary, and dress. But, there is one thing that brings them together; The hopes of doing something good, to share a smile, and wish to make a difference even if just for an hour, even if just to one person.  It’s great to see so many people come together and show kindness and love, especially because the many people in search of a hand or a warm meal come from all different walks of life as well. The people waiting in line with a smile every morning have done things and lived lives similar to the ones we are living, they just have stumbled, by choice or by circumstance, into something many of us have not nor will ever experience. 

        In the short amount of time it takes to help those around us that are in need we can learn many things about ourselves, about others, and about life. It is an eye opening experience and can open your mind to many things if you allow it to. Knowing that you are selflessly giving up less than an hour of your day to make a difference in the life or lives of others is a simple thing, and can be very rewarding.

       This month Shar Berroyer, Alpha Xi Beta's secretary and fulltime student shared her experience and what she thinks of volunteering with Las Vegas Catholic Worker.
 

       Soup and a Smile is an amazing event where the community can go help the Catholic Workers to serve food to the homeless.  I know that sounds very simple and like what a lot of people do but now I understand why.  You see, many of us take for granted the fact that we have homes. Many of us drive cars and we are able to pay for the insurance to do so. We know where our next meal is going to come from and we know how we are going to cook it. We also know that we have a warm bed waiting for us before we go to sleep each night. These people don’t, they don’t even know when they are going to be able to take a shower. Some people are there because they have issues and you just assume that they are unable to function in society. Some have been hit hard by the down fall of our great nation’s economy and some have just never been shown how to live. By sharing this small act of kindness it helps give them hope in a sometimes hopeless world. It is hard for me to describe how serving breakfast for these wonderful people makes me feel. It fills my heart with an amazing love for my fellow man. For me, I know that what I am doing is right and the time I spend helping these individuals is time well spent. I am a full time student, have a job and a family and like so many others I am crunched for time. In this instance time seems to go out the window and before I realize it breakfast is over and it is time to go clean up. The time I spend helping I have found does not cut into my study time or anything else that I need to do in my life. To see their smiles and to hear their “Thank you’s” is enough to bring me back week after week.



A Wanna be Photographer

Last Saturday was the infamous Pancake Day, and members of Phi Theta Kappa were there to help!

Here are a few pictures I was able to take.



Our wonderful Shar handing out nectarines.




Cynthia on chocolate milk duty!



The new loved tomato and cucumber salad.

Dustin and Abriana helping to sweeten up the coffee.

Smiles are always better!



Richard and Cynthia with chocolate milk in hand.





President Rains

     It's always fun to see if new volunteers are going to show up, and what experiences they can share with all of us volunteering with the Las Vegas Catholic Worker. We get new ideas and points of view from every volunteer and even from the many people we help out in the lines every morning. Some ideas can inspire and challenge us to want to do more, volunteer more often, come up with different ways to help others in our daily lives. But, the best thing about the ideas shared between volunteers is simply that, being able to hare our thoughts and opinions on things and feel like someone is actually listening, and that we can make a difference.

     This week's entry is from Phi Theta Kappa's Alpha Xi Beta's very own President Dustin Rains. He has done more volunteer work throughout his life than I hav room to write about in this blog entry. He strives to make a difference in the world, and in his community.

    

Were you meant to be a teacher? Were you meant to be a doctor? Were you meant to go to college? All of these decisions come back to the core point of having different opportunities. Some people are blessed with multiple opportunities in their lifetime; some don’t have it that easy.

Not everyone chooses to be homeless. People become homeless because of unemployment, death in the family or even a mental instability.

I’ve only attended Soup & a Smile on two occasions, each of them very different. As you arrive to the vacant lot on G Street and McWilliams, you start to wonder about each of the stories these folks have. What has happened to each of them? Why are they living on the streets? Is there an opportunity that you could lead them to?

I like the idea of Catholic Worker giving food to the homeless but I think the meals should be given along with other types of help.

Each day, Wednesday through Saturday, they see the same faces of people lining up for a good meal. If we continue to provide food without adding something to it, why would they ever change or turn their lives around? They have no reason to go and get a GED or apply for various programs if they aren’t given an incentive to do so.

My suggestion to Catholic Worker is to give out a hot meal every day. I’d be glad to help as much as I can. One morning a week before the meal, make them attend an information session on how to prepare the perfect resume or how to apply for different services they can qualify for and then provide them a great meal.

If people are forced to gain knowledge before they get a meal, will they show up and help themselves or will they allow themselves to starve?



You can't see his face, but thats Dustin handing out bags of candy.



Hunger Pains

This week I have pictures from the famous Spaghetti day!

The pots of spaghetti and tea.

 




She was kind enough to be my model for the day serving spaghetti with a smile.

 

Hunger:

Noun

1.      A compelling need of desire for food

2.      The painful sensation or state of weakness caused by the need of food: to collapse from hunger

3.      A shortage of food; famine

4.      A strong or compelling desire or craving: hunger  for power

Most of us have been lucky enough to have never experienced the excruciating hunger that the numerous homeless people in our community do. The embarrassing growl that our stomachs release during the school test or meeting with the boss is not the hunger that I am referring to. It is the hunger that leaves you weak and tired, the horrible pain that leaves you sitting or laying helpless waiting for the warning signal your brain and stomach are sending you. This pain I know I have never experienced, I have been “starving” at times because I had neglected to feed myself for a longer period of time than usual. But, I have never gone a day without food, let alone having to do that more days of the week than not. Hunger is an issue in so many people’s lives, one that can lead them to do almost anything to stop the ear shattering grumble of their stomachs.

This entry is from a volunteer who will stay anonymous, an entry that I feel is extremely deep and moving. It made me stop and think, and I hope it does for you as well. 

  

 

Hunger Pains

I pause to feel the emptiness of my stomach. The pain and movement of hunger will soon pass, I tell myself. With each wave, the body becomes smaller and more beautiful. Discipline.

The rotting hole in my stomach feels strong today. I brace myself for it to pass, focusing my mind on other things. Each shock of hunger that I can sustain, allows me to give the little food I have to my two babies. Discipline.

The belt wrapped around my waist needs another hole. Soon, I will need new clothes. My profile is straight, flat, thin. In control.

My jeans barely stay up anymore. I wonder if the mission can give me a belt. The children are cranky, poor things.

Breasts once were all you saw. Large. Shrunken down to nipples and flesh. Feels unfeminine. I once had curves.

Nourishment, sustenance once came from these breasts. I should have four more months of breast-feeding left. Nothing. Shriveled and dry. My baby’s nutrients gone. I could once provide for them.

My heart thumps loudly in my chest. Its strained efforts to keep me alive are frightening. I pause to walk up steps, afraid of the blackness that often enters my sight. Zooming in and carefully zooming out, the floor closer to my face than ever before. Will I survive this? How did this happen?

My heart aches in the hole of my chest. Panic, fear, loss, broken. My children have stopped screaming from their hunger. The silence of their emptiness is haughtily worse. There is no energy left for them to scream out their injustices. Will we survive? How did this happen?

Hunger.