This holiday season let me express with utmost reverence and sincerity my gratitude for all that God has blessed me with.
I have recently participated in a service project that has severely impacted my life. A group of my friends and associates scrounged for, and bought winter coats, hats, and gloves to distribute to the homeless and needy in Salt Lake City. I have seen a side of life that was difficult to observe. The natural man inside of many of us wants to remain in ignorance, or pretend that our eyes did not witness that side of life where you see fellow human beings suffering and living in ways we would never wish for ourselves. Astounding, it is absolutely astounding that we are here, living in the 21 century and some of us still live without the necessities that have allowed us continuance from day one of human existence. Unfortunately, too many of us, myself included, give into our natural man's intuition. We pretend like we never saw those in need, just so our lives will remain at ease. It is time to step out of the bubble of comfort in which we live. Let us rise to be greater then the natural man, by overcoming the urge to sit back relax and take it easy while men, women , and children all over the world still fight, not to pay of their credit card bill, but to stay alive, or to put at ease the hunger which pierces their stomach like lemon juice to a paper cut.
One of the concerns that my group had was that the nice coats which we provided would end up in the hands of someone who would rather feed their monstrous addiction to drugs, alcohol or tobacco, than provide warmth through the cold winter night. It does happen. Addiction and Moral perversion can be leading factors in these peoples position in life. An intoxicated man laying on the floor of one of the shelters we visited backed my testimony of this as he bellowed "Next person that a touches me I'm a gonna bla-ast um", while my feet shuffled near his face in the crowded hall. We tried to avoid providing aid to such addictions at all cost. However, no matter what hands the coats end up in our conscience will not be affected because we were doing what we could to aid in a battle for humanity.
Luckily, for my group as we were getting out of the cars to venture into the shelter my friend flagged down a woman passing by on the sidewalk. Aside from providing her with a coat hat and gloves we were able to find out just how frequent it is that a donation of some kind will be used to feed some ones dark habit. She told us how she happened upon her station in life, and how she appreciated the help she received. Prior to our meeting she was without hat or gloves, her shoes were spotted with tears and rips, and she was just borrowing a thin coat from a friend. She was once living under a road bridge with a few others when their home and source of shelter was taken away because of road work and demolition. She left for a few minutes, then to our surprise returned with a friend whom she had found which we could trust to properly use the supplies we had to offer.
Our next adventure was entering the shelter, as we had decided that those volunteers running the place would be able to distribute the donations to the proper people. Many, men and women were waiting in line to gain access to the warmth of the building. The lengthy line was a result of the long process of inspecting each individual that entered for any dangerous behavior or intoxication to insure the safety of all the temporary residents. Many heckles were thrown our way as we were permitted to the front of the line to drop off our winter attire. Along with the insults floating around our heads hands from all direction were fondling the mountains of coats that we carried in our arms. One man with the stump of a cigarette came and while his hand rested on me he pleaded for one of the jackets that I carried. I could see the desperation in his eyes. One might wonder what drove that desperation: an addiction, or was he pleading for protection from the biting cold that would otherwise keep him up all night. Despite what it was I could see the pain this man was enduring, and as a result I allowed him to take the top coat, which his hand was already resting on.
I will never know the outcome of that coat but I feel I did some good in the world that cold night in Salt Lake. I do know however, the impact that night had on me. I witnessed a hard side of life that we often have no idea is there, because it is hidden from us to "protect" us from it's influence or to hide the shame that it would bring upon us to let others know that our own communities have these social problems.
As my family gathered around the dinner table a few nights later, we were prepared to enjoy a meal which my father proudly prepared. He offered a blessing upon that meal and in doing so he thanked the good Lord for our own blessings and asked a blessing on those less fortunate, on those who have no home, on those who were going without nourishment that night. My eyes gathered my own tears as I saw my fathers eyes drain onto his plate. Despite our own struggles we were among the fortunate who had food to replenish our strength.
No matter what station we are at in our own lives, there is room for service, even if we have to make room by expanding the bubble of comfort around us. This Christmas Season the goose is fat so let us share the trimmings with those who ask only for the drippings.
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