Change in perspective

I’ve had an occasion to rethink something and while I’m not sure what my brain wants to make of it, I’m sure it’s something I’ll think about more often…

A frozen bottle of water made me depressed and sad.  I got in my car this morning and the bottle of water I left in the console last night was a solid block of ice.  I had to think about what it must be like to live out in the streets here in Chicago.

Bums, Homeless, Dropouts, Drifters, Street people…  I’m sure some social worker somewhere has a definition for each of them and reasons why one name doesn’t apply to another group.  I’m talking about people that live in the streets.  Whatever you want to call them, they’re the ones I’ve been thinking about recently.  I’m calling them bums because it’s shorter to type.

I’ve always been friendly to the bums.  I’ve handed out cash, given rides, taken a few of them to get food, even sat and had breakfast with one.  But this morning I had to think of the difference in climate.  If you’re homeless in Florida, you’re camping.  If you’re homeless in Chicago, you’re dead.

“At this festive time of year, Mr. Scrooge, it is more than usually desirable that we should make some slight provision for the poor and destitute, who suffer greatly at the present time. ”
“Why? Are there no prisons? Are there no workhouses?”
“Many can’t go there; and many would rather die.”
“If they would rather die, they had better do it, and decrease the surplus population.”