What I Learned This Summer, Part II: Homelessness

This is the second part of a four part series. Read part one here.

Last week, I gave a brief overview of the lessons I learned relating to my photography business over the course of the summer. This and the next two posts deal with some thoughts I have, and lessons I learned, relating to a myriad of topics such as homelessness, “guarding one’s heart,” suburban homes, and the Gospel.

I returned home from my spring semester to find our local newspaper, the Howard County Times, sitting on our kitchen table. One of the prominent stories (now mysteriously missing from internet archives) discussed the problem of homelessness among students in Howard County. In one of the wealthiest counties with one of the best school systems in the nation, about 500 students do not have a regular nightly home. Some are shuffled around among extended family members; some are literally homeless. I was astounded. Further internet searching led me to the Plan to End Homelessness, a document detailing a Howard County initiative to prevent future homelessness and help those already without a home (around 220 at the beginning of 2010).

What can I do? The question began pinging around my brain almost daily. The homeless, unloved, stuck where they are whether through unfortunate circumstances, mental imbalance, laziness, or some combination of any number of factors. Passed by on the streets, considered a burden. Yet are these not also children of God? Are they not as deserving of love as those of us who consider ourselves well-off? At the same time, what point in there is throwing money in the jar they’re holding? Is that love; does it solve anything? I am one redeemed by Christ on no merit of my own. By His grace and by His power I can participate in His work to redeem and restore all things – what then can I do?

At a major intersection near my town, where several big-box strip malls stand, there are often one or two homeless, cardboard signs in hand. Several times, I passed by, noticing the same tall man wearing long pants in the early heat of Maryland summer. What can I do? A sense of fear and a sense that I couldn’t do enough or do anything effective paralyzed me for some time. I was well aware of a deep irony: my trips that brought me past him were to get a tailored pair of dress pants at a nearby clothiers, an expensive article of clothing I expect to wear twice a year. This man had no such luxury. So one day, I parked the car and walked down to the intersection, waiting for traffic to stop so I could cross.

Introducing myself, I asked his name. “Calvin,” he said. His sign read Homeless, God Bless. He wore a faded baseball cap and a scraggly beard, yet had life in his eyes. Hope, even. We talked for about 5 minutes as cars passed by and one or two people gave him some spare dollars. He thanked them profusely and waved as the nonstop bustle of my hometown continued. Calvin told me he had lost his job in the recession about a year or so previously. A job prospect in Arizona had fallen through, but he was hoping to be hired again very soon. The loss of his job and his home forced him to turn to God. The words of the Bible sustained him; the trust in God and His goodness kept him going. He spoke in glowing terms of God’s faithfulness – such joy in such a situation! I spoke what encouragement I could, agreeing with Calvin – God is faithful. I shook his hand and gave him what cash I had as I left, speaking a sincere “God bless you,” as I left. “God bless you,” he responded, “I look forward to meeting again in the celestial city.”

I spent the ride home trying not to burst into tears as I thought of this man’s astounding faith and peace in such a difficult situation. I thought of his sincerity and gentleness. I thought how strange it was that in my attempt to bless another in the name of Christ, perhaps it was I who left with a greater blessing.

I passed by Calvin twice more that summer, stopping once to get him a bottle of water on the day that was particularly hot. I haven’t seen him since, and I pray he got that job he had mentioned to me.

I relish the chance that I would see him again – not here, but in that celestial city, that New Jerusalem.

What can I do? I do not know the full answer. But I do know that homelessness is not simply a problem to be solved – the homeless are a people who need to be loved. Tossing money their way as I walk by is not love. Acknowledging their humanity, having a conversation, offering them a meal or drink – I’d say love looks a whole lot more like that.

What I Learned this Summer, Part I: Photography

I have returned to Virginia Tech for my final semester. After several days of meeting freshmen and helping them move in and get settled in their new home here, its time to reflect on the past few months. I learned a lot about business and photography, which will go into this post; a follow-up will detail some of the lessons I learned on a broader scale of life and faith.

Hey, if you are not taking the time to periodically look back and remember your experiences and learning, you are wasting a big opportunity to grow, know yourself, and even have a better idea of where you are going. A life devoid of self-reflection is dangerous.

As I was setting up my business, I discovered that legal and governmental "stuff" is just obnoxious. Not only did I have to fill out a great many forms and wait for them to be notarized and processed, but meticulous record-keeping and quarterly tax forms are required in addition to the yearly tax return filing. Say goodbye to the 1040 EZ.

Having an advertising budget of $0 makes things really difficult. "If you build it, they will come" does not really apply to small businesses in portrait photography, especially in an area where there are loads of people trying to do roughly the same thing. You have to go out in your community and communicate your ability and presence. Thankfully, the "high school mom email network" was helpful in this regard, as were other previously-established word-of-mouth venues.

The placement of your office/workspace is critical. I set up my workspace in our basement at a built-in desk. I had a good amount of space to spread out, but was away from windows and noise and people. If you are not an amazingly self-motivated person, this setup will be most unhelpful. Halfway through the summer, I found myself growing frustrated with the arrangement but without a better spot for relocation. Ergonomic issues with typing and computer location led to sore wrists as well.

Know your stuff! You have to practice, tweak, experiment, and plan. The work I put into everything for the first few months of the summer gave me much greater confidence in my photography than previous years. I was better equipped to give direction during portrait shoots and more able to communicate my skills and understand the wishes of my clients effectively.

Take advantage of the free and cheap. I learned a lot from books I checked out at the public library. I built my own sturdy portrait backdrop stand out of scrap wood and a piece of PVC pipe for a total cost of about $2.50. I learned loads from videos on the internet dealing with all sorts of aspects of photography and editing software.

It's amazing what you can learn when you simply go for something. You'll fail and you'll succeed, gaining experience and knowledge no matter the specific outcome.

Check back next week for a summary of what I learned about life and faith.

Musings on Chimney Rock

This past Sunday, a few friends and I visited Chimney Rock in Catoctin Mountain Park, a 3-mile round-trip hike to a wonderful view of the valley.  It being Sunday evening, we saw no one else on the trail.  The feeling of solitude and peace in the fairly young forest was refreshing.

Along the way up the trail, we conversed about all sorts of topics, before taking a detour at Wolf Rock, a spine running along the ridge that almost breaks above the treeline.  From there, it was clear that the sun had nearly set, and we walked quickly on, so as to reach Chimney Rock in time.

We watched the sunset for about half an hour and then hiked back to the car, walking to the beat of the cicadas - "All nature sings and round me rings the music of the spheres."

On the drive home, our conversation turned to spiritual things.  One of my friends voiced the question, "Why does God seem so different in the New and Old Testaments?  In the Old, He just seems mean."  It's a good question.  A fair question.  I, too, often struggle to comprehend how the God who became a man and died on a cross to ransom me from death could also condemn entire cities and nations to destruction.  Why would He, in giving the Israelites their promised land, command them to destroy everything and everyone in their path - including children? How does that fit with the notion of a loving God?

In talking about this, I was reminded of a story in the book of Genesis (please read it here), in which God had just made a covenant with Abraham and promised him a son, Issac.  Now, God has decided to destroy the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, for "the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great and their sin is very grave."  But Abraham bargains with God, asking if He would save the cities should He find 50 righteous people living there.  God says He would do so, and Abraham keeps asking, until God says, yes, He would save those two cities if just 10 righteous people lived there.

Much could be written at this point.  I wish to remain brief, and for that reason, I will only focus on one aspect of this story, at the expense of several others.  What must be made clear, in this instance, is that God does have the right to judge sin; that is, rebellion and deliberate pursuit of evil.  However, God is also a God of mercy.  Were there just 10 righteous people in those cities, 10 people to intercede on behalf of all those who had deliberately chosen to defy God, God would relent in His anger and spare the city.

This, here, is the key.  God hates sin.  Not only is it a rebellion against Him, but it is also enslavement.  In this story, we see that Sodom and Gomorrah are enslaved by sin.  God's justice commands that it be eradicated and, if there is no one righteous to intercede on behalf of the sinner, that justice commands the death of the sinner.  But, if there is someone who can say "let my righteousness cover these who have sinned, that they may not be destroyed," God shows mercy.  This is His heart.  This is the Gospel.

In this conversation with Abraham, we see a foreshadowing of Christ.  Christ, the sinless Son of God, who interceded for the entire world, whose righteousness covers all who will trust and take for themselves this gift.

"For the sake of ten I will not destroy it," says the Lord, of Sodom and Gomorrah.  Ten righteous people will save a city doomed by its own depravity.

One perfectly righteous man will save the entire world doomed by its own depravity.  That is God's mercy to all mankind - in Christ, we can be free from enslavement to sin.  His righteousness covers us.  His death absorbed God's wrath towards sin.  His resurrection is proof of the defeat of sin and death.  We can be free, if we turn to Him.

The story of Sodom and Gomorrah, as you may well know, ends with their destruction.  Only Lot, Abraham's nephew, and his two daughters escaped.  The rest of the inhabitants were destroyed, their utter sinfulness a loud testimony against them.  There was no one to intercede on their behalf (See also Ezekiel 22:23-31 for another example).

Enter the mystery of Christ: God Himself comes to intercede that both His justice and love should be satisfied through the cross.  Sin is defeated and destroyed, the sinner can once again come before God, covered by Christ's righteousness.  The echo in God's conversation with Abraham is now a loud, loud shout.

On Time Management

"I don't have enough time!" is a phrase I hear frequently, and often from myself.  Is there anyone who has their life so rightly balanced that their time is never wasted and they are able to do precisely everything they hope to accomplish?

I reckon not.

As I grow older, I find it more and more imperative that I use my time well.  No longer can I play Age of Empires II for hours on end (as I did in high school) without feeling as though I've missed out on something important.  If I were to time travel back to my freshman year of college, I'd probably slap myself and tell me to get off the computer and go do something more meaningful.

Granted, as an introvert, I need time to be alone and recharge.  But, I consider this to be a necessary, fruitful use of my time.  Refreshing Facebook over and over is not (Though I am not immune to such a disease!).

I consider good conversations, hiking, thought-provoking reading, community service, prayer, and cooking to be effective, meaningful uses of my time, among others.  Yet, I cannot do all of these things all the time as much as I would like!  Attempting to do so would be futile and unnecessarily stressful.  Understanding that I cannot do everything, then, frees me to do my best to choose great things, even at the expense of good things, without being crushed under the weight of it all.  Do I always succeed at this?  Absolutely not.  But, thankfully, I am slowly getting better as the years progress.

How do you spend your time?  What would you do if time was no constraint?