What’s In It for Me?

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It is not difficult to observe humanity. Some can drive past a person holding a sign that reads, “I will work for food,” or they may pass through skid row without ever wondering what it takes for someone to demean themselves in such a way, or what happen to them to cause this demise. Some will ask you to clean your windshield or even pump your gas, and when rejected, some will say, “God bless you, brother.”

Some who beg for alms understand what it means to be human more so than those who have never fallen through the cracks. When one is homeless, they lose not only their dignity but also their ability to function within society. Even if they have some source of income, they are more likely to be denied the ability to purchase a car, open a bank account, or even vote, to name a few. All these activities require a physical address. Personal hygiene is a challenge and creates further obstacles for the homeless in securing employment.

Temporary residents of motels and cheap hotels due to their inability to obtain permanent residents are also considered homeless as well. Their rent becomes due daily. At 11:00 in the morning, rent comes due. If not paid by that time, regardless of the situation, they are locked out—either by a metal stub placed into the keyhole on their doorknobs, or their key entry cards are deactivated. This creates additional problems, as on many occasions, vital belongings for survival, such as computers, tablets, laptops, and cell phones, are confiscated, or locked in their rooms until their daily rental fees are paid.

Some form of Internet access is mandatory for the homeless to pull away from total disaster of homelessness. I have been there and done that. Some pawn their wedding rings, smart devices, and God only knows what else to scrape together enough revenue to pay for just one day’s rent. Yet the 24-hour window remains hanging over their heads until the next day. Some will make all efforts to retrieve their smart devices from pawn shops. Pawn shop owners are aware of this fact, and many humans with good intentions will accept these useless items for pawn to help, and also because they are certain that these items will be retrieved more rapidly than even a wedding ring, or other valuable items.

Daily income is mandatory for the homeless. Without a daily financial safety net, or help from friends and family, most of them are 24 hours away from living on the streets, or in a motor vehicle if one is available, and can be parked with safety, without being confiscated by police authorities. Until one drinks from this cup, they are truly unaware of what it takes to get back on their feet after a trip of homelessness. The sad truth is that most of us are only one paycheck away from the window of vulnerability of being homeless.

Many of us understand the importance of having a safety net or income security, and if we are human, we also understand the value of reciprocity. Reciprocity comes at unexpected times and in unexpected ways. It is aways a good thing to have just a smidgeon of skin in that game for one to even believe that help is on the way. One does not miss their water until the well runs dry. We can move mountains for others ourselves if we can only insert a little elasticity in our mentality by not always asking, “What’s in it for me?”

Occasionally, God allows us to experience unpleasant things, specifically to pull our coattails. My coattail has been pulled.  I can still remember the many nights that  I sought answers to questions for which I had none. If there had been only one opportunity available, I would have accepted it readily, but few were available at that time. I was lucky. I still had faith. I had helped others, and this notion provided me increased faith. God provided me with answers right when none could be seen with the naked eye.

People later told me they would have been elated to help us if I had only asked.  Humans have pride, and I have no doubts about my humanity. I understood their generosity, but humans have difficulty accepting help from others, especially when there appears to be no light at the end of the tunnel to ever repay what they have received.

After I had my turn in the barrel, I spent many nights horrified by nightmares, and also lying there awake thinking about the eleven o’clock deadline to pay the rent for my family to have a place to lay our heads. I also thought of what would happen if I were required to drink from the same cup once more.

My experience with homelessness gave me insight that, believe it or not, few people ever gain. I realize the importance of having a mechanism available for those who have fallen through the cracks or are hanging on by a single thread to have a system of survival. Some of us may never require it, but it is nice to know that it is available.  Sometimes a hundred dollars or less per month can prevent someone from experiencing events that can be life changeing indefinitely—whether for better or worse. Obviously, God believes that some of us require a little awakening.  I would like to believe that I was one of the lucky ones who understood the nudge from God, as my tenure with homelessness was brief.

When I observe homelessness up close and personal, or through YouTube or other places, it touches my spirit. Even at the ripe age at eighty-one, I still endeavor to do something about it, even while recognizing my own shortcomings. I know that it is not just about me exclusively. I would love to believe that I am beyond homelessness, but this is the way I felt before I became homeless the first time. No one is beyond it.

I am convinced that if a person is truly human—unlike other hominoids—they will not always ask, “What’s in it for me?” when they set out to remedy an ill. God whispers, and they already know.  I know it is a shot in the dark, but I believe that humans have the wherewithal to provide others with the means to pull themselves up by their own bootstraps if given a chance. I feel that the onus of burden is upon all humanity to do something. Obviously, our leaders are remiss in judgement to make the necessary changes to show their humanity in regards to homelessness. I have many ideas upon how to ease this burden.

At first, I believed I could create a sharing system to stimulate interest in my program by enacting a referral program where subscribers could pay a $20 initiation fee, recruit others into the program, and receive $10 in compensation for doing so. But then I thought about it. If someone paid to join this referral program and was unable to recruit anyone, they would have paid money and received nothing in return. This bothered me.  This led me to do some soul-searching.

I know that if one is human, they will desire to assist in promoting a system where they can donate to others in helpless peril. They could understand simply paying a dollar or more to post a short video message for others to view and those viewing these video ads would receive fifty cents to do so, and the other fifty cents is dedicated to expanding the program.  It is truly is irrelevant whether one posts a video about a product, service, good, or even an idea—anything that provides a revenue source for others viewing their ads and getting paid as a means of  a way to make ends meet. They could even post messages that provide solutions to the homeless problem, or even ads for part-time employment or whatever.

Most of us prefer not to give away our hard-earned money to those unwilling to work to earn their keep. Humans are compassionate that way. Most prefer to call balls and strikes without bias also. Some also desire outlets to express their opinions and make suggestions to those who will listen. They also require transparency. How is the excess revenue being used? Who is profiting from the system. They must see that whatever program they support is genuinely working toward its stated goal, and that everyone involved gets exactly what they expect. Security is a common denominator for humanity. Humans desire peace and tranquility, and they are willing to pay for it.

Check out our new U9itus program and let us know what you think at www.u9itus.com. See exactly what’s in it for you.