You think you had a bad day?
In the past 2 weeks I have had two very interesting and heart breaking encounters with 2 men who live on the streets of Montreal. And I would like to share the story of one man as I just can’t get him off my mind. I have shed quite a few tears just thinking of what someone has to go through on the street just to survive.
I was walking home after a busy day of checking things off my ‘to do list’ and feeling very satisfied with myself. I saw a man in front of me yelling as his belongs lay scattered all over the sidewalk but I couldn’t hear him as I had NoFX blasting in my headphones. I took 10 steps past him and got that gut wrenching feeling like I had to go back. I took off my headphones off and asked him if he was alright. In a very kind voice he said ‘I am having a bad day!’ I plopped myself down beside him on the sidewalk as his dog Pops licked his face and we started talking. That morning he had received an $80 ticket for not having his dog of 16 years on its leach (even though the dog was just sitting right beside him), someone had just stolen all his personal belongings including his dog food which he seemed to be more upset about than anything else. He hadn’t eaten in 2 days but for some chocolate cake that the Salvation Army had given him, he just got a new change of clothes from them as well. And the bag that was carrying his new belongings in had broken.
Thinking about the things that had happened in his ‘bad’ day made me feel so selfish for feeling bad about my days. I have it GOOD, as most of us do.
We sat on the sidewalk for about an hour talking about his life and the insensitivity of human kind. He has not always lived on the street. He came to Montreal from Nova Scoita 3 years ago for his friend and dog’s funeral who where killed instantly by a drunk driver. He fell in love with Montreal as most do when they come to visit this great city. He got a job, found a women who he married and then things started to go down hill for him from there. He got laid off from his job of 2 years, went on unemployment insurance but could not find a job. So welfare was the next step for him and his wife, who cheated on him and took what little they had with her when they got divorced. He lost his apartment, which means he lost his welfare putting him and his dog on the street. He says no matter how hard he tries to get himself off the street even with the organizations out there, the ridiculous tickets from cops have to be paid in order to keep him out of jail and in possession of his dog. His only true companion in life.
He told me of a story when he was sleeping in the metro with his dog and the cops came to kick him out. But obviously very aggressively as his dog started to bark, one of the cops pulled out his gun and said ‘If you don’t shut your dog up I will shot him.’ That is messed up. Luckily it was all taped and the cop was reported. He is now on a year suspension without pay. What you should take from that… Cops should not be able to carry guns! I have my own personal horror stories with cops in Montreal and in my option avoid them like the plague.
This man never asked me for anything. He had a kind heart and a flicker of hope in his eye. I felt so touched by this man. I couldn’t give him much as all I had was $1 in my pocket, a granola bar and a cloth bag all of which I gave to him.
Moral of this story. We are all human after all, it doesn’t matter what we look like, where we live or how we smell. We all have those basic human needs of food, shelter and human companionship. Next time you see a homeless person make eye contact, smile and given them some warm food. Your kindness goes farther then you think. Everyone has a story, you just have to make the time to listen.
Links to some good homeless articles/missions in Montreal:
Old Brewery Mission (Montreal)
Helping Homeless Kids and Dogs (Montreal)
Festival season means more homeless in Montreal jails
Recycled parking meters collect donations for Montréal’s homeless (Montreal)
The Red Ten Campaign (National)
5 Days for the Homeless (National)
Very touching story crystal. You made me cry. I am sorry that man has endured such hardships. I hope he has more bright stars like you cross his path! If you see him again, buy some dog food for his pup and please send me the bill, you know the address! It’s sad but there really are millions of people out there in this world who need our help and we often are too wrapped up in our own lives to notice.
When I got tendonitis at the start of the year, I threw one hell of a pity party. I don’t know when or how it hit me, but one day I think I was sick of it and I figured out ‘Jess, you have a roof over your head, you have food to eat and clean water to drink, you can read and write, you live in a safe country that isn’t war torn, AND you have a family and partner who love you endlessly… you may not be able to use one of your hands, but you are still one of the luckiest people in the world.” ….I wish that people would count their blessings more often instead of their ‘woes’.
Thanks for always being so inspiring and for writing so passionately about the things that you care about! People like you make this world a better place.
<3 jess
That is so sad and it shows that people who think they have some authority take it too far in making themselves feel better but at the end of the day what goes around comes around.
[...] Plett from the house of heart who wrote a very moving blog post today that urge you to read: “You think you had a bad day?” Please begin to count your blessings instead of your woes, and help spread some positivity [...]
Great post, Crystal & thank you for sharing your experience. I must admit to often giving a few dollars but never stopping to chat and really get to know a person and seeing how I can help further. I attribute this to fear of the unknown so also applaud your bravery.
I’m grateful for so much and when things aren’t going well I try to remind myself that if the particular drama is the worst thing that happens to me, I’m doing ok.
Covenant House in Vancouver is another great place for your readers to make donations (if they are in my neck of the woods). http://www.covenanthousebc.org/
Dear Crystal & readers:
Please note: the Red Tent Campaign, and other fights for a nationwide (Canada-wide, that is) housing strategy would be a great place to put outraged energy – every Canadian deserves a safe place to call home, and without this kind of program that’s just not looking likely.
I know it feels good to sit down and listen to the homeless folks, but there’s no way to help everyone in Canada without some larger action – that is to say that there’s always going to be people (many many people) left behind without a nation-sized intervention.
Without an acknowledgment of that, I worry that this post is simply a self-congratulatory account of “that time I really listened to that homeless guy.”
Thanks everyone to talking the time to read my post and for all the wonderful comments. I am only one person but I hope that everyone will start to extend kindness to everyone no matter who they are.
As for the comment from Sarah, I can reassure you that this post was not a self-congratulatory one but a post to show that everyone is the same and needs the same basic things to survive. I am sorry you didn’t get that and worry I am trying to turn the spotlight on myself, which is not that case.
Hope everyone is having a wonderful day and the sun is shining down somewhere near you!
Much Love,
Crystal
Dear Sarah T:
I never realized there was a need for a nation wide plan to sit down and listen to someone, someone that’s probably happy to sit down and talk. You’re right, before we sit with someone, let’s wait until we can sit with everyone. A nation wide intervention it is. Truth is, it will never happen. Until that dream of yours comes true, i don’t think it’s bad in any way to share experiences like these, the more acknowledge it the better. It’s not bad to sit down and make someone happy and share it, it does’nt have to be part of a plan. And people can’t stay quiet until they know all the programs out there, that’s a ridiculous idea. I think because it’s a cause you know a little about, you appropriate it to yourself, it makes you feel unique so when people show interest in it, you feel the need to manifest as someone who knows more about it. You are no one to give lessons on self-congratulation, in fact, you are the best example of it. You are the reason nothing ever moves foward in our society.
Thank you, on behalf of the homeless.
I know this post isn’t about you but I just wanted to say that I really appreciate you as a person and that you took the time to write a post like this and included those links to organizations. I find myself more on the side of just giving to organizations because I find homelessness a very overwhelming problem and I know those people have a much better grip on what to do and how then I ever could.
I’ll be honest I more often then not write those people off, especially if they are drunk walking around. They scare me a bit and I never respect drunkenness but I know I need to have a bit more of an open mind with this sort of stuff.
This is such a sweet and amazing story. There are a few homeless people around where I live, too, but they are difficult to talk to because they are usually really drunk and stumbling and not making a lot of sense. I always want to give them money, but I’m afraid they will just spend it on more alcohol…so sometimes I just give them food.
I loved your story. So sweet of you.