The people I have met throughout the past year have truly changed me and molded me into a better human. They have shown me true strength and true joy. Because those things come from the depths of a raw and honest soul that has nothing to loose and everything to gain.

The residents at the homeless shelter got me addicted to Motown. They taught me how to cook greens, among many other things...

Before I left my job, I mentioned to a resident that I would miss them all, and that I hated to leave them. I hated getting close to them and then separated from them, but that was the nature of the homeless shelter anyway. Most of them were always on the move, always transitioning...

He told me that I shouldn't feel sad about being separated from them because I needed to realize that they never forgot me, and never considered the physical space to mean anything at all. We would always be family.

One resident bought me cake and ice cream and three me a going away party. He told me that I needed to realize that I was special. The love was overwhelming.
I'm a different person now. They parented me, guided me, encouraged me, took care of me. I always saw beauty in each resident that worked in the kitchen with me. So many different people, so many gifts, so many personalities.... All people struggling to make it through. People no different from me, just in different situations.

I think about them often and pray that they find their way as I try to find mine.