It's cold outside... where are you sleeping?

For us the economic crisis started in 1931… (or something along those lines) was an advertisement to raise funds for a homeless shelter that I saw in the subway today. And it really made me think. As I got out of the subway station and walked across the parking lot to my car, the bitter -29 temperature freezing my nose and ears on my short 3 minute walk, I was asking myself about how this economic crisis affects the poorest of us all.

Maybe it’s in my nature to want to help those less fortunate then me, maybe it’s the fact that I hate seeing people out in the cold; but I’m really concerned that places like shelters and food banks aren’t seeing an increase in government funding despite the increased demand for their services as the economic crisis deepens.

We have a paper here that is published twice a month here called L’Itineraire. It’s published by former homeless people. All the reporters are either homeless or less fortunate. They sell for 2$ each, the seller keeps a dollar from every sale. With the proceeds the paper has opened a restaurant, full meals for 2-3$ each three times per day. Every time I see someone selling it I buy one, it ends up costing me about 20$ per month. But the great part about it is that sellers have an income, an opportunity to write and they can afford 3 square meals per day.

But other then this paper, every other organization in my great city relies on donations and government funding. With people’s savings shrinking, jobs becoming scarce and everyone panicking about money; how are these places supposed to not only stay open but increase their services to those who need it the most?

If you’ve got a couple of dollars you can spare, please, I urge you: buy someone you see begging a meal, a coffee, a book or give them money. If you don’t like giving them money, like I said, buy them a meal. Take them to McDonald’s it’ll cost you 4$ and it’ll take 15 minutes of your time. I met one of the most interesting people ever a few years back doing just that, we ended up talking about classical music for hours and the finer points of the compositions of Rachmaninov and one memorable occasion we even discussed Winston Churchill’s wartime political strategies.

So when it’s cold outside and you see someone who looks like they might need 5 minutes of your time or the sandwich took work, look into your heart and brighten someone’s day because the government won’t. It’s amazing what you can learn from the less fortunate when you’re willing to open your heart, your mind and your change purse.

Muchacho Enfermo

Recipe for a better world

I know I've been going off-topic a lot these last few days, but this is one of those rare times where I've been inclined to do some introspection and soul-searching.

I've recently posted about getting mad at injustices worldwide and trying to find a way to make a difference on a larger scale. Today I'm going to make it even simpler and bring it down to an individual level.

When I was 12 years old I was a boyscout. Every week we had our meetings and in those meetings all of us would have to recall at least one good deed we'd performed in the previous seven days. Anything from holding the door for someone to visiting a retirement home. Again, I was 12 and I could come up with something good I did every week.

There was an old man that used to beg on a street corner near my apartment years ago in a poor neighborhood. His name was Jim. He was in his 80s and had been begging on that corner for the last 20 years. Jim lived with his daughter because he couldn't afford a place of his own. His daughter sent him out every night to beg and wouldn't let him back in the house unless he had made at least 100$. So out Jim went and stood there, sun or snow.
Everyone in the neighborhood knew him... One day something amazing started happening: a convenience store owner told Jim that instead of standing outside, he could hold the door to the store for the clients and he would give him 20$ per night on top of the change that customers would give him. A restaurant owner down the street gave him a cell phone, they told him they'd give him 20$ per night and if they needed ingredients that they would call so he would go pick them up and bring them to the restaurant. Me? I opened Jim a tab at a local coffee shop, he could have all the coffee he wanted and every Friday I'd pay it up. On his 84th birthday I went and bought a cooked chicken and a 6 pack of Pepsi and we ate it together on a bench. We didn't talk. At the end he shook my hand and thanked me. It was the last time I saw Jim because the week after I moved away.

I know it was a long story, but the moral of it is: Do something and don't expect anything in return. Someone will follow your lead and pay it forward. It all started with the convenience store owner's gesture and it trickled down to every one else.

By taking time out of your day and touching one life, you will inevitably inspire others to do the same. Hence making the world a better place.

Muchacho Enfermo

Not exactly political

This time of year we are all bombarded with adds about being charitable at Christmas and helping out our fellow man. The radio also pounds out that Paul McCartney song that makes us all feel guilty (you know the one). I thought I'd take this opportunity to write a little bit about causes that I believe in; some of them are free, some of them cost time others just cost donations but all of them make you feel good.

Locally in Montreal we have quite a few organizations that help cater to the less fortunate all year round:
There is the long established Sun Youth which we strongly supported through my old employer, they help provide everything from food banks, to rec centers to shelters for battered women.
Dans la Rue is one of my favorite charitable organizations ever, Montreal being a large urban center we attract a lot of disenfranchised youth that ends up living on the streets. Dans la Rue provides them with an education and career training center, shelter and every night they drive around the city in a few RVs distributing food, blankets, medical services and condoms to street workers. I have donated time and money to this organization and have loved every minute spent with these street kids.
Food Banks Canada is another central hub for donation and volunteering campaigns throughout the country worth checking out.

Short of having money or time to donate? Donate your time online, from your lunch hour at work to a few minutes from home... Pick a cause, any cause. If you want to get involved with Human Rights, find a blog that talks about it and start commenting, start your own website and talk about it. With blogging software it takes about 2 minutes. All of us have a need for some sort of activism or some void to fill because we feel we aren't doing enough. Well this is your chance, do something now. Even if it's just writing about it. Who knows maybe you can inspire people.

It's that time of year people, families are hungry, homeless people are cold, Zimbabwe is dying of cholera, Hoder is in jail, Cuba is still under the thumb of the Castros, the Dalai Lama is still in exile, Burmese monks are still going to jail for no reason and children are going to school without breakfast. What will you do about it?

Merry Christmas, happy Hanukkah, irie kwanzaa!

Muchacho Enfermo