I meet Joe at The Great Thanksgiving Banquet. He’s sitting on the curb behind a metal lamppost, hunched over his knees. There’s a pristine styrofoam tray sprawled next to him, one section filled with pasty shreds of cheddar, another with an untouched crust of beans. He seems unfazed by the horde of people an arm’s reach away, pressing in on a man handing out free blankets and winter clothing. Instead he’s as still as if he were asleep.
I round the lamp post and look at him to see if he’s awake. He tilts his head up at my approach.
“Hi sir, are you okay?”
“Oh yeah, I’m doin’ fine, I’m doin’ fine.” His speech is hurried and garbled, almost so I can’t understand him. We talk for about half an hour.
My main takeaway: it’s starting to look like theft and loss of belongings—IDs, phones, etc.—is really common among people experiencing homelessness. As in, so common as to be unremarkable… but it hurts no less.
–Isabella, 12/17/16
← Read Joe’s Story