The Story of A Homeless Man

Sometimes you have to wait awhile and let time pass on before you can share a story. I think that’s somewhat true. For those in my inner circle yo u know this story. I’m sharing this story because I’m truly passionate about trying to change the system.

I’d like to define homelessness for a moment. Many people have a misguided view of what it is and what it isn’t. Homelessness is not a choice. It’s a symptom of a bigger illness,problem,tragedy,epidemic, or addiction in a person, or a family’s life.

For 10+ years I’ve been homeless. Wandering the face of the earth. Often times I had a home. But I never felt at home. I never felt like I had any connection. I often had shelter, and nice shelter. But I was often alone. I tried changing that thinking that a bad relationship, and marriage was better than no relationship.

The stress and chaos of bad business decisions, bad family life, and everything propelled me into a state of chaos. In the past struggled with substance abuse. All of the above plunged into horrible health and this landed me in the worst series of chaotic health events of my adult life.

First, Malaria. Then my Appendix Burst. Then truly I was alone. Alone to deal with this and a nasty divorce. One that often turned violent.

Some people believe that turning to God and religion will solve all of these problems. But my personal belief is that this too is often a crutch.

The biggest cause of homelessness I believe is not economic crisis, or health crisis, or addiction. These are all outside factors. The real cause in homelessness is a lack of healthy relationships.

This is something I really lacked. At thus my inablity to overcome homelessness had nothing to do with shelter. I could always go live in Tijuana with any of numerous unsavory friends. Instead I forced myself to develop and build a network of friends and amazing ones at that.

A true Band of Brothers & Sisters who I share life with. I’m not done yet.Life is a progress. It’s a journey in the making. I’m not perfect, I’m far from it. But this band of brothers and sisters is a daily inspiraction to continue striving to be a better human, to continue to try to bring real change to the world.

I am a man who has so much and my greatest asset is not my skills, or my money, or my talents, or property. My greatest asset is in my band of brothers and sisters who daily lay down our lives for each other in search of a better life, a simpler life. Who overcome our fears, and our weaknesses, and our splinters and strive to bring love to a very broken world.

I’ve been homeless for 10 Years, maybe even my whole life. Im just now starting to feel at home with a band of brothers, who by example are teaching me how to love again in spite of life’s unfairness,unjustness, and in spite of my own massive failures have embraced me as family and love me.