“My greatest fear is asking for help and getting rejected.”
I heard that comment from a homeless guest who has been aggressively pursuing some positive options in his life. In recent months I have been impressed by his dogged determination using the Center’s phones, computers, mail service and scanning capacity to cobble together a new life.Today he seems poised for success.
This morning he reviewed his endeavor and said, “This Center has been the lifeline. Everything I needed to make it happen was here. What I realized though is that my greatest fear is asking for help.I am a proud person, and I had to figure out how, at 45 years of age, I could ask for help. Getting rejected just destroys me. Like many homeless here, we get rejected and denied over and over again, and we lose heart. But this time I’m gonna make it.”
His story is dramatic, but it illustrates one of the fundamental features of the Center, giving the homeless the tools they need to access systems and pursue plans. We also try to provide a critical but intangible resource: encouragement. In the face of persistent fear and constant rejection, reality-based encouragement often makes the difference. We have to believe that. We have to.
Written By: Christopher Emerson, Director, Manchester Homeless Services Center
Written By: Christopher Emerson, Director, Manchester Homeless Services Center
