Great advise Lui and thanks for sharing!

Hugs Tee

Now the rents are going up so high and the government are trying to stop inflation by hitting the lower income (huh) we will unfortunately see much more of this. It is so sad. What a lovely kind act that you did. I really get annoyed that people ask for money in the streets when it is so hard to come by. So many people asking for $2 on the street and I think why should I give you money for nothing. They should go to centrelink. They need more affordable accomodation and food vouchers and I hope that the government does come up with a plan to help the homeless people and I wish they would stop taking money off the battlers like the senior pensioners and the carers. It made my blood boil when I read that in the newspaper this weekend.

Lui, this is the Charity I worked for way back in the 80s, thought it might interst you.  http://www.cyrenians.org.uk/news/understandinghomelessness.html .

It was an amazing experience and a real eye opener.

Luv, Winnie.xxxx

This is a nice, thoughtful story we shouls all put into action.

This is a heartfelt article and a subject that sadden's me  and makes me immensely angry. That ,in this day & age and in this so called lucky country, that there are those, our fellow man....homeless & starving.....it just shouldn't be.

I also remember what Bob Hawke said Cazza and your so right 20 years down the track....nothing has changed.....out of eye sight....out of mind!

Lui, you have had some beautiful responses here and there are so many wonderful and caring people out there that do help....but there are those who simpley ignore the less fortunate....it's like if we come into to close contact, we might catch what they have.

Many years ago while working in Centrepoint, i came across many less fortunate than myself and helped as much as i could, when possible.... even today i give when possible...either by food ( even if it is just one can)....clothes....blanket's....and even just $1 here or there to charity.....it's not much, but  if everyone that could, did the same....it surely has to make a  dent.

I don't know if anyone remembers a few years ago on "60 minutes"....they done a story on 3 men....1) a doctor....2 a lawyer  and third one i can't remember....who were living on the streets because  of events that had happened in their lives that were out of their control.....through Ray Martin doing that story....the 3 were gainfully employeed once more and got their lives back on track. Their story really touched me  but i thought at the time there are so many thousand's out there, that are not doctor's or lawyers, in need of a break.

I'd better get off my high horse, hey....i agree with all your suggestions Lui....but i feel the main one is to contact your local  government....over & over again....unless we have volume's of voices speaking up for the less fortunate....nothing will change.

I wholeheartly agree with your last sentence "It is never to start creating a world  that you want to live in! 

I read this last night but wasn't able to comment.  Fantastic article and i could just imagine Jaydee going up to the Man, what a great kid....my guys are a bit too shy and i doubt they would do that but we can always lead by example, right?

As Winnie said there are some that shirk the system but most have a story to tell, and i think being a square peg in a round whole society is extremely difficult and some people just don't make it through.  But they are human too and humans need love, kindness, compassion and support to survive emotionally just as we all need food, shelter and clothing....

One last thing, sorry to bleet but i always look at people like that and think they were somebody's baby once........and can feel some sort of compassion, even if their predicament is self inflicted because it is a skill to cope with life and some people never learn those 'skills' and i think it all boils down to resources.  Less money beind spent on Statues and more money being spent on Statures!!

Thanks Teshia, it was just a bunch of random sentences, I jammed it together as I was telling Jaydee's grandparents about what a great little guy he was when I needed to count on him.  I swear, there was pure light surrounding him when he beamed down at the man, and I was so proud that he wasn't afraid, and trusted that I was nearby to protect him.

I can just imagine you carrying muffins and water, it must have been hard telling people that they had to move on.  Living where we do, and walking to work, I don't see this ususally either... I am sure my workmates that travel through the city do have the opportunity to see it, though they may not notice it anymore. 

As a 20yr old trying to get on with your life, you showed a good deal of compassion.  If every single person with a home did the same, it would make a huge difference.  These people aren't in a situation to help themselves, so it is up to us who are able to put pressure on the Government to resolve these issues with a long term solution; not just get them off the streets for big occasions.

Thank you for your feedback, I really appreciate it, as it seems to be a topic that most people would prefer to sweep under the carper, or toss in the 'too hard' basket.  xox

Lui, what a fantasticly heart warming advice article! I do not venture to the city very often (and only to town once a fortnight) so I do not come across this personally any more, but when I worked in security I did see some of this. There would be homeless people sleeping in skip bins or on the back steps of businesses at night that we had to move on - I could see no harm in letting them sleep somewhere warm but the business owners paid for us to remove them - I would always carry a batch of muffins and some water with me to give them as I told them they had to find a bed somewhere else, and tell them where to go to get some help. This was not by any means a LARGE city either, just a medium sized country town that had become inundated with tourism making rental prices sky-rocket and sending people onto the streets. The town did have a wonderful community help program that gave food vouchers for Coles, but they were very short on housing. I only wish I could have done more to help in my time there, but as a 20 year old trying to find herself I moved on and built my own life. I always think about those I came across and wonder if they ever got help & made it.

Thankyou for writing this wonderful article to remind us all that we are so very fortunate & should do all we can to help those less fortunate. I can see the smile on that man's face as Jaydee handed him some "goldies" and it's just made my week!

Teshia xxoo

Excellent advice, to look at those that surround us is to see the world as it really is. I have my regulars, that get their baccy and smokes, then I have the eaters who wish for a cuppa or chocolate. I have two youngsters who will not seek aid yet,I understand why, and that is fine. When Ruth and I first approached them and got chatting, they did not want money so much as food. So on a Thursday when we do the shop they meet us and they pick up the basics from us when we leave. Bread, cold tinned meat, fresh fruit and some bottled water. It all comes to less than £10, less a night at the cinema or a video evening. 

There are those who will try to work the system, but the majority have a tale to tell, and there is little between theirs and ours except life circumstance. I worked with the homeless, and learned much from their lives and how things can go so wrong. Shirkers there are, but in reality the majority are lost to a world that does'nt see or want to. A smile costs nothing, but can evoke a feeling of worth, in a section of society who feel worthless. They could be our children, our parents our brothers or sisters, in the blink of an eye life can change and does. It is a complex issue and never black and white. Thankyou for sharing.

Luv,Winnie.xxxx.

Great article on how it seems to be  a high stats in the mainland.. As a ex ward of the state,, i came in contact with many street kids and adults and its not a pretty sight.. But saying that yes i agree we shouldnt turn a blind eye. One thing that sticks in my mind is the promise that Bob Hawke made just before he was made the prime minister years ago, that he said before he was elected,, No child would live in Poverty, and we have no one living on the streets,.. Now 20 years later and the stats are as high as what they were back then,.. So yes we can keep Donating , and helping those unfortunate,, But its a about damn time the Government made it easier for everyone to live comfortably and not have to live like those on the streets... Interest rates are climbing and no Job is secure,, so what hope does our children have in todays society.,. as we can teach them to give to those that need it, and hope and pray that we never be like those that sit on them platforms or sleep under bridges...

xxx cazza

Hey Lui ,

Fantastic advice i feel sorry for homeless  people you dont see many around here though . It doesent take   much to give  a little something to somebody less foortunate than ourselves . XX

being generous to those who are less fortunate shows great strength of character because many would just walk away.  These homeless people have a life story too,  and often, they have a lot to teach us.

Just another thing, those who approach you for money shouldn't be given it, because they aren't genuinely homeless and are often trying to beat the 'system'. 

Les and I both lived in a place where there were many people who were the 'scurge' of the city, and while most of the time, we left these other people to themselves, there was many a time when just a smile or an action of help (holding doors when their arms were full) brightened their day, even if they didn't remember it when the drugs wore off.  Many homeless people do choose to be that way, but they are the ones who make an effort to find work and keep themselves clean.

When we were staying with friends in Brisbane, there was a homeless man there just down the road, and everyone walked around and over him without even looking at him.  Yeah, he stunk, but he had such wisdom in his eyes, that I had to look at him, and I always got a smile from him.  They are the lost souls just trying to survive in a world that the rest of us have created that doesn't include them.

You know, I make a point of trying not to look away if I see someone others don't want to look at.  Be it homeless, dirty, fat, ugly, disfigured, disabled, whatever.  Because I think it is important that these people are acknowledged as well.  Avoidance of eye contact can be so much more devastating than harsh words.  Most will never know what has put these people into this situation.  Most if not all did not make it by choice.  Thanks for sharing Lui. 

What a prety name, Luisa.  Your message is quite clear, especially in today's world with questions of economic stability.  Those who are poor serve a great need in society, just as those who are rich. Stop and think, second hand cars, clothing, reconditioned appliances, yard sales, day old bakery products, marked down damaged store produce. Those in poverty purchase and appreciate what some take for granted.  Stretching out pennies, rarely having treats, relying on acts of kindness in a world unkind to them. Predjudice, stares, unfashionable clothing, lack of medical care, the underserved of life have the same emotions as the rich and famos, and more times than not, are more genuine.