4.24.10

Yesterday was the Music City Marathon in Nashville. 35,000 people in town along with thunder, lightning and torrential rain. I started getting calls from folks in Tent City the night before looking for additional tarps and flashlights. About mid-morning I got a call from a middle aged woman who used to live in Tent City but got into a rehab program over a year ago and who now has her own apartment and job. She called from Tent City. Seems she had gotten lonely and decided to visit her friends at Tent City where she relapsed and had spent the last week on a drinking binge. She called to ask if I would come get her and take her home. She said she knew she had really messed up but was hoping I wouldn’t be too mad to come get her. That’s what being broken is all about – knowing when you have messed up, confessing the mistakes and then starting over. I drove to Tent City in the pouring rain, wrapped a warm blanket around her and took her home. There will be plenty of time for talking with her about what happened, the triggers and how to try and not make the same mistake again, but for yesterday it was just time to be thankful that she called and give her a ride home.

Later that day I grabbed some fresh “D” batteries and a couple of clean, dry sleeping bags that have been donated by the folks at Otter Creek and headed back to Tent City to distribute to people who were trying to stay dry and warm in the tents. The wind was unbelievable under the bridges and folks were desperately trying to keep their possessions dry but not having a lot of success. Even though it was 60 degrees it was wet and folks were cold. I handed out blankets and some towels as well.

Finally I had the chance to visit with an older woman who had called Otter Creek last week looking for help with her rent. As we talked I learned she had been living in a hotel for over 3 years. I sat up a time to visit her for yesterday. As we talked I learned she had lost her job in December and now her unemployment was running out so she was calling churches to get help. She had almost no community and no one willing to help her. We talked about how she was (or was not) helping herself by trying to find a job. Honestly it didn’t sound like she was trying too hard. She had no police record, a high school degree, her id and a car. Even in today’s economy a person should be able to get some kind of job with those factors to your advantage. I showed her how to create a work history so she could be more effective in filling out applications and I pointer her towards several career centers. But in the end I told her that I just didn’t feel like Otter Creek could help pay her rent right now. She needed to show some greater initiative and give us a chance to get to know her better. I gave her $20 in a gas card to help her get to a few job sites, prayed with her and said good-bye. It will be interesting to see if she follows up on the next steps we agreed to take. I left thankful for the resources given by Otter Creek to help people in need and aware that with those resources comes responsibility to be wise and kind. I pray I lived up to that challenge…