Philosophical Ramblings

“Poverty lies in the shadow of prosperity”, according to Simon Castles in his January 5, 2004 article A soft target that is too close to home featured in The Age. Those words annunciated truth to many others and myself as we walked through the various streets, alleys and lane-ways of Melbourne this week on our city retreat.

The facade that is the prosperity and glory of inner city Melbourne crumbles as one is confronted by issues such as homelessness and poverty at the very heart of our city. Brand-names advertised fervently on store windows become meaningless, drained of their novelty, as one confronts the challenging prospect that a person is lacking a home, for whatever reason, in one of the most prosperious nations of this age and reputedly one of the world’s most livable cities.

Popular myths and stereotypes are challenged and broken as one encounters the many faces that greet you in Credo and St Mary’s House of Welcome or the Sacred Heart Mission in St Kilda, each with a story to tell. The sheer diversity of faces is incredible testament to an interesting truth – the widely broadcast stereotype of a typical homeless person is false. Under closer and deeper examination, such stereotypes of what a typical homeless person is tend to dissipate and one begins to understand that each person is unique and their experience of urban poverty too, its causes and its consequences, is unique.

One can be homeless for many reasons and one of the things I have learned from this experience is not to assume that one is homeless because of either ‘this’ or ‘that.’ Judging persons on the basis of priori assumptions in an ineffective and usually inaccurate method of understanding people and their situations and experiences, which are often mingled with both happiness and sorrow. Mother Teresa of Calcutta reflected upon this when she stated, “If you judge people, you have no time to love them.”

What I found interesting was how people in the general public, myself included, react upon confronting a person who is homeless on the street. Sometimes we can tend to look away and not make eye contact, perhaps preferring a willful ignorance rather than acknowledging the reality before us – the reality that many among us suffer from urban poverty. Tim, an enthusiastic young volunteer for Urban Seed, tells the story of a young successful and respectable business man who dressed to what he perceived was the appearance of a typical homeless man, for a costume ball. The man, walking through the streets in his costume noticed that people looked at him differently and would not make eye contact, preferring to ignore him, perhaps fearing that they would be confronted with an inconvenient truth that homelessness and poverty does exist even in a city as marvelous as Melbourne.

One of the most striking sights that the team and myself encountered was at St. Ambrose’s Church in Brunswick, where Sr. Zita and a whole team of volunteers and Church workers organizes free produce and grocery items for individuals and families who perhaps struggle to afford the purchase of such ingredients. There, a young woman with two young children entered among the many other faces. They were a family. A harsh reality struck the team so deeply – urban poverty affects families too, not merely individuals.

Throughout the city retreat, the team opened a window for understanding that urban poverty can affect anyone. It can affect youth too, as we saw many persons, perhaps as young as us, enter the Sacred Heart Mission for a nutritious meal and sense of hospitality and genuine community- perhaps even a sense of home for many. Urban poverty is not ageist, therefore, it can affect young and old. Many of the persons outside Rosie’s Food Van on Flinders Street were elderly. One of our team commented that his mother was quite elderly and required care. He found it immensely difficult, therefore, to contemplate the extent of tribulation an elderly person experiencing some degree of urban poverty would have to deal with.

Struggling with urban poverty does not mean that a person looses their sense of humour or their personal interests, dreams or talents. The team had an interesting and humourous conversation with a man outside Rosie’s Food Van on Flinders Street. We connected with him by discussing a topic of shared interest – Australian-rules football. Another man, also interested in the AFL, entered the conversation. Team rivalries flared, but through that interaction we were able to find common ground for dialogue – interests that we all shared and could discuss. Another man at the Sacred Heart Mission in St. Kilda revealed that he was a musician. Urban poverty had not robbed him of his talent, creativity or imagination, neither had it stolen away his interest in music. Sometimes it may be easy to forget that others, even those who experience the hardships of poverty or homelessness, still retain dreams and aspirations, talents and interests.

There is hope even amid the difficulties of urban poverty. We saw such a hope in the politeness and the smiles of the people receiving free meals at the Sacred Heart Mission. They did not feign to greet us or to make polite comments. They even thanked us for our smiles. One could sense there existed a sense of belonging and community, a sense of hospitality amid the many voices in concert and the music playing in the background. I believe that is a source of empowerment… having a sense of belonging and community where one can interact with others and establish one’s own identity.

It does not require tremendous actions of immense magnitude to make a real difference in the world. Change begins from within, by opening a window towards understanding. Making a difference begins with simple actions, even as simple as a smile, which can often be taken for granted. Mother Teresa wisely contemplated once, that, “It is not the magnitude of our actions that matters, but rather the amount of love that we put into them.” If that is true, then even a simple smile projected with pure intention is indeed a wonderful action that could perhaps brighten another person’s day and give to them the gift of hope.

Acknowledgments and thanks must go to many people who have in various ways contributed to this city retreat. I feel compelled to thank Peter and Suzanne for their wisdom and guidance, Brendan for his full support, my parents and Ashleigh also for their full and ongoing support, Maurico, Tara, Hope, Melissa, Adrian and Emma for their company and sharing this experience with them, and thanks to the Nunnery, St. Mary’s House of Welcome and Sacred Heart Mission. Thank-you.