Street Retreat
Gubbio Staff members Jose Lopez and Ed Bowers recently participated in a week-long street retreat hosted by the Faithful Fools! Jose and Ed, along with 6 others, took to the streets to be in solidarity with thousands of other individuals in San Francisco.
"At Glide I tried to act friendly and nice; but inside I was anxious and frustrated. Everything bothered me, every noise, every person, every thought! During our morning reflection I tried my hardest not to snap at other people. I kept reminding myself that I was feeling this way because I was tired and had a rough night... After our reflection all I wanted was to relax and just sit somewhere. That is truly impossible in the Tenderloin. There are no benches to sit down on. I couldn't lay down anywhere without being asked to move. I couldn't risk sleeping because I had to watch all my things. All I wanted to to sit down and read."
We highly recommend reading the rest of Jose's powerful reflections:
visit his blog.
 
First Night of Street Retreat By Ed Bowers
Friday night the rain
was a slow train
passing through
without a set schedule;
everyone who fell into it
became invisible.
Something is always wrong when
you are homeless,
but the invisible life must endure, pretending to be confident,
and you search for an exit door
to hide under;
doors like that offer freedom
to the ones who own them,
and they will stand there
without complaint for you,
unless their owners
see you using them.
The only time I'm seen out here
is when they think I'm doing something wrong. It's still raining. |
