college experiences?

So I befriended a couple of homeless guys.

The original assignment for my 'Visual Communication' class was to create a photo story of 9-12 images about anything we wanted. Of course the normal thing to do is to meet a couple homeless men on the street, take pictures of them, and then write some captions and a story. The original story is here.

I can't promise you the actual written story is any good. It's really not. I am not a good story teller. Especially not in the journalistic sense. But I think my pictures aren't bad. heh. I used my story to portray a first encounter and introdution of strangers you might meet on any given day. Their names, what they liked doing, where they were from, what they did everyday, and what's recently gone on in their lives. I heard about the abuse they suffered as children, the work they used to do, and their difficulties with alcoholism and living out on the street.

No, I did not know what I was getting myself into.

I've always had a heart for the homeless, just never the gumption or motivation to truly go up to them down on Kirkwood Avenue and speak to them or get to know them. And that fateful day at 12:15PM when I got off the bus, I wrestled with the decision for a good 5 minutes. Below freezing with bitter wind, there was only one guy there. I walked past him twice before God finally pushed me to talk to him. I could have interviewed a ballerina or a musician in the Jacobs School of Music. I wanted to interview a ballerina or a musician. But no, God put it in my heart to talk to these people, and so I did.

To be honest, every time I look back at the pictures, I can't even remember being there, sitting there for an hour Valentine's Day around lunch time, talking to them. I can't remember seeing their faces so closely, hearing their stories. Did I really do that?? It was like some sort of out of body experience. It was weird.

But I guess that was just God moving in me. No, I know that was God moving in me. It was all God. Putting in me the heart to love these people, to sit down and talk to them, to go back and talk to them again. I sat there for an hour in the 'feels like 10 degrees' weather, shot pictures with my 35mm, and talked to two fifty-year-old men with overgrown beards, deep set wrinkles, problems with alcohol, and worn clothes. Right in front of Chipotle. Yeah....I did......

God calls us to love all people. He showed us that he loved everyone. He died for everyone. Everyone. Man, God's love is so great. Crazy. So crazy. I mean I think it's hard to love business kids and greek partiers. But the people who society has already naturally rejected and shunned?

The assignment was due Monday. Technically, I don't have a reason to go back this weekend. Last weekend I went back to shoot a few more photos, ask them a few more questions. I stood there with snow-cold water in my boots talking 'at' them as they sat on the curb where they excavated a spot out from the blanket of 8 inch snow. But they were so happy to see me. They were so glad I cared. That I acknowledged them.

It's heartbreaking.

They think I'm going to help them.
I'm not sure exactly what that means to them. Help them financially? Help them get a job? Help them get better? Help them write a resume?
I doonnnnnnn'tt knoowww.
But God has placed these guys in my life, and me in theirs. So I can only trust Him to use me in a way that will glorify Him. So we'll see how that goes. I befriended a couple of homeless guys. Their names are Karl and Bobby. And I'm glad I met them. All the praise and glory to Christ Jesus.

Yeah so that's what I've been doing..hope all y'all are doing well :)

THE END.
02.24.2015