Jim’s Journey

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. -- The emotionally and physically worn man was sitting in his van with a sign in the window reading, “Homeless vet needs work.”

As I looked at him further, I wondered what he had experienced.

His face suggested he was tired, and perhaps somewhat desperate. Although I was able to “see” that in him, there wasn't that much more visibly apparent. He appeared to exhibit a quite understandable guard.

The van was parked outside a Whole Foods Market, a few miles from Albuquerque's Downtown. As I walked over to the van to see if I could help, a small dog growled and barked protectively.

I introduced myself and asked the occupant, whose name I learned was Jim, whether I could help and if he would tell me his story.

Jim told me that he came to Albuquerque last winter en route to Long Beach, Calif., and he ended up getting stuck in Albuquerque. More specifically, he had car problems and ran out of money. And with a job awaiting him in Kansas City, he was anxious to be on his way.

I asked Jim how receptive people had been to his plight.

He said they had been pretty nice, but inferred that he had experienced a pretty difficult time in obtaining employment. In fact, he said, getting a job can be easier said than done.

He said, “Not everybody has a pristine past. Some people have a checkered past. They made mistakes in their past before, and just because you go in front of a court and they give you a sentence, it doesn't stop there. It follows you. So a lot of times you fill out an application, and you don't tell 'em about your past. Then once (they) get on the computer, they find out about it or you tell them about it, and you don't get a job. So, it's kind of a ‘Catch 22.’”

I asked Jim to tell me about his dog, whose name, I learned, was Shannon.

He said, “I was camped out by the American Legion on Lomas. I sleep with the doors open, and I woke up one morning and she was in my driver's seat. I tried to get her to move and she bit me. We have been together ever since.”

I asked Jim if Shannon had become his best friend.

He said, “Yeah, she bites me every day but she's my buddy.”

I asked Jim what he would like to tell people how they can help the homeless.

He suggested some of the stimulus money and using it to help the homeless. He said so doing would put more people to work who would otherwise be a “drain” on the economy.

I asked Jim where he would spend the night the day I interviewed him. He said probably by the American Legion on Lomas. He said that the location is safe because of the close presence of the Legion. In addition to that, Jim said, there are very few people there and he felt safe sleeping with the doors open.

However, I wondered what it would be like to sleep outside in what for me were such potentially dangerous conditions. My brain took and ran with that idea. All sorts of questions and “what if's” raced through my mind.

What if the weather went from cold to freezing; would I survive the night? What if bugs started crawling over my body; would I even be able to sleep? Even though I believed I would be safe, what if I were harassed. Would I make it out alive? Would my adrenaline keep me going? Would “fight or flight” kick in?

Jim said post traumatic stress disorder made it difficult for him to stay at homeless shelters, as that usually meant he had to be around, and get along with, a lot of other people.

As w concluded our short interview, Jim said while he would take donations to help him along the way, he was also willing to work. I bought Jim some gas, and some food to help him on his way. I prayed, and wished him Godspeed.

As I drove home that night, my mind was in overdrive. What had gone wrong with our country where someone like Jim, a veteran, was slowly and perilously making his way from city to city? Would he ever make it to Kansas?

I knew I would make it to my final destination, that being home. I knew the comforts that awaited me there.

What about Jim? What would it take to help get him to Kansas? How long would that take? Would his job still be available?

The answers can be found in the hands of God, and in those He prompted to help Jim. I encourage you to pray for Jim, and those in a similar predicament. There are so many like him.

By Jeremy Reynalds - ASSIST News Service