Finding Hope in Disparity

On my way to work, I often pass a woman that has set up residence in between a few different bus shelters.

What really struck me the last time I saw her, was the advertisement she was sitting under. A real-estate company was advertising their new app which lets you message the details of your dream home and they will find it for you and text back.

This picture upset me.

She was organizing her belongings, getting ready for the day, and eating her breakfast in a bus shelter, sitting under a poster of someone wanting “a big eat-in kitchen with stainless steel appliances.”

I often don’t know how to respond to these disconnects in our society. We have an app for everything – you want food to your door – there’s an app for that, to buy something – there’s an app for that, to find your dream home – there’s an app for that too. We can find anything and have anything in a moment, but we haven’t been able to end homelessness, or the opioid crisis, or food insecurity, or the number of other things facing those on the margins.

It’s hard to have hope in these situations. How do we share hope with others, when we may not have much hope ourselves?

We celebrate the little wins.

A sunny day after days of rain.
Our favourite song on the radio.
A step forward on the journey of change.
A client getting their ID, one more step closer to housing.

As we go about our work this week, let’s share hope by celebrating the little wins as we strive to be, “The Hand of God, in the Heart of the City.”

Peace,
Erin