The Real Meaning of Poverty

By Anonymous, , PA

I will never forget the way I (feel) in that homeless shelter in New York. I never truly�� (know) how fortunate I����� (be) until I �(see) how little some people have.� (Visit) the homeless shelter �(open) my eyes to what it really �(mean) to be poor, and�(give) �me a new insight on life.�
�
Last year, in the summer of 2009, me and about twenty other students from Calvary church �(travel) to New York City on a mission�s trip called New York Go. Although I was excited, I was a little nervous and unsure of what to expect because it was my first mission�s trip without my family.� (arrive) at our destination was much more of a surprise than I expected because I had never seen such a run down place. We�(stay) at the Soul Saving Station, a small church in Harlem that �(serve)as a homeless shelter every other day.

After we had �(wake) up and showered on the second to last day, we� (go) to get our breakfast, where they informed us that we would be�� (split) up into separate groups for the day. The group I was assigned to, was supposed to stay at the soul saving station, serve food, and interact with the homeless people that came to the shelter. When they opened the doors, people started to enter the room, and I was deeply shocked by what I saw. Feeling (embarrass)�, I almost wanted to leave because of how nice we looked compared to them. When we were �(assign) jobs, I volunteered to wash dishes in the back because I was afraid to interact with any of them, and thought that was a good way to get out of it. Little did I know, the conversations I had that day would have a positive impact on me in ways I will never forget.

As my friend Dan and I were �(wash) dishes, my youth leader (come) back and told us we ��(need) to switch jobs with other people and go interact with the homeless people. My heart �(sank), and I � (become) very nervous as I walked out into the room where the homeless citizens were eating lunch and looked for someone to talk to. I scanned the room for someone who I felt comfortable� �(approach),�and of course I didn�t find anyone. At that point, I realized I had to get outside my comfort zone and talk with people from a background I had never �(encounter) before.

Finally, to my relief, something stuck out in my head. A man was sitting down alone �(wear) a New York Yankees hat and I decided I would talk to him. I nervously approached, asked if I could sit with him, and �(get) an immediate yes. The conversation started off with everything about baseball, our favorite teams, who we �(think) was going to win the World Series, and so on. Farther into the conversation, I became more comfortable and started to ask about his life. He�(began) to tell me that he barely�(eat) anything outside of the food he got every other day at the shelter, and I was deeply hurt. I find myself complaining about not getting enough food I like all the time and some people go days without anything.�

The depression and hopelessness I � (see) in the homeless shelter in New York will never leave my mind. I saw what it truly �(mean) to be homeless and starving, a term many people use to say that they�re a little hungry. The people I talked with in New York will always be in my heart and I (will) forever have a new insight on life.