Out of Downtown, A Little More Going On

We were children.  Homeless crusaders were children who knew their parents and some didn't.  Some were raised by surrogate faces on the streets, taught about shelters and hustling for change; and survival, avoiding the police and the thugs.  The children learned about where to sleep, where to find food, and where not to go.

*Photo copyrighted from Shutterstock.com

Children raised by the system, kept in the system, aged out and discovered "freedom" to do and go, what and where, they wanted.  But children do not always know what they want.  The child sleeping at night with adults in a car or an abandoned building or a shelter does not always know ... what he / she wants.

The children, with parents consistently present, sleeping at night in their own bedroom in a $300,000 home in sophisticated suburbia do not always know what they want.  And we, as parents, who were once children, do not ... always ... know what is best for our children.  But, we are not off the hook to make judgment calls, advocating for our children, even though we are not totally sure what the right answer is.  We don't always know what the right questions are.  But we ask questions, even though we may not know the right question.

Out of Downtown, and suburbia, and out of our fears, and our pain, and the lies we believe, and the hope we embrace ... we have privilege and responsibility to advocate for our children.  We have questions to ask, answers to find; stories to tell and hear; and love to pour out; judgment calls to make; and wisdom to gain from other parents.  We all have something to bring to the table. So bring it.  Our children need us.

Okay, I'm out.  Peace
T / Story Man / Humor Agent