Wednesday, May 18, 2011

about sandwiches

Emma's girl scout troop volunteered to prepare 100 sack lunches for distribution through the Phoenix Rescue Mission, which is an organization that serves the Phoenix homeless. Five squirrely 9 year olds got together and pb&j'ed the heck out of 200 slices of bread. After the bags were packed and the sandwiches were sufficiently squished underneath bottles of water and granola bars, I offered to drop them off at the Mission's main campus, which was located inside a dilapidated industrial park in downtown Phoenix.  Asher was going to tag along, so I took the opportunity to explain to him what exactly we were doing and how our actions were benefiting those less fortunate. He was very interested in the fact that people can live outside rather than in a home and he asked where they slept. I told him that I've seen quite a few gentlemen sleeping on park benches.  To him that sounds like the ideal situation - play at the park, sleep on the bench, and repeat. As I pulled up to the center to speak with the gate keeper, I noticed there were at least 30 men of the homeless variety milling around the gated entrance (and by gated I mean a locked barbed wire fence). Asher noticed the men as well and quickly seized an opportunity. He proceeded to take off his seat belt, roll down his window, and stick half his body out of the car to yell loudly

"WHY DON'T YOU GUYS LIVE IN A HOME?
DO YOU SLEEP ON THE SWINGS TOO?"





Asher at Old Navy