{"id":622,"date":"2017-11-09T13:35:52","date_gmt":"2017-11-09T12:35:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/fine-print.co.uk\/FinePrintNewsBlog\/?p=622"},"modified":"2017-11-09T13:42:00","modified_gmt":"2017-11-09T12:42:00","slug":"homeless","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fine-print.co.uk\/FinePrintNewsBlog\/homeless\/","title":{"rendered":"Please watch out for the Homeless…"},"content":{"rendered":"

I went to Edinburgh on Tuesday, it’s my favourite city. Near 7pm we dropped into McDonalds – yeah, I know. Outside sat a young homeless man, (probably around 19-20), calling out for spare change. He was very loud, to the point of awkward.<\/p>\n

As we were just going in, I had decided, I would drop by him when I came out if still there. It is the charity most closest to my heart… and I usually do watch for one homeless person on any trip. It’s not hard to do.<\/p>\n

Later…<\/h2>\n

When I came out, I handed him ‘a little help’. He was very quiet, and then I observed his face. I tend to like eye contact – the eyes are the windows of the soul. He was sitting, holding up a cardboard sign, his face was scrunched in pain. I’m guilty of not reading what was written. My concern was with his body language. I asked the obvious ‘stupid’ question. “Are you okay?”<\/p>\n

He said, “not really.” I did venture to ask him what was wrong. Again, pretty stupid, but I didn’t want to leave him, because… he was crying.<\/p>\n

His reply was, “I haven’t slept in 3 days, I’ve been here 5 hours. I just want to be able to go to a hostel and sleep. I’m sorry.” “I’m too scared to go to sleep in case I get attacked on the streets.”<\/p>\n

His woolly hat had about \u00a32.50 including my contribution.<\/p>\n

I asked him how much the hostel was – \u00a318.<\/p>\n

Seriously, this is just so heartbreaking…<\/p>\n

He didn’t need to apologise, and whilst our conversation wasn’t long, I felt both his fear and knew this wasn’t an act. Most of the homeless I’ve ever met, manage to mask stuff. This was sheer exhaustion and breaking point.<\/p>\n

What we don’t notice but would if we were homeless<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Earlier on, I’d spent half an hour at 2.45 sitting on a picnic bench outside a small converted garage, whilst my daughter was attending an appointment. I noticed the lovely cyclamen in containers outside the door. I managed to half-heartedly read a page or two on my phone – a kindle book. Then, my butt felt damp, my back ached, my knees pained and my hands were freezing. I had no more concentration (and inside I was screaming for warmth and time to pass). So, I escaped for a walk along a street to find a cosy gift shop full of beautiful things to gaze upon.<\/p>\n

Back to where I was now and our young homeless<\/strong><\/h3>\n

He didn’t really have that option, did he? I did what I could to help him further towards his goal. He had time to find a few extra quid. Richard, it still plays on my mind, I hope you found somewhere safe Tuesday night (and last night). And possibly a few more strangers willing to help you.<\/p>\n

All I’m really trying to say is, please watch out for homeless folks… it’s freezing out there. It could easily be you or I.<\/p>\n

Think on the ‘any spare change’ thing, cos honestly, you can’t buy a chocolate bar for much less than a pound these days, so 20p won’t even buy YOU a treat. If you can spare more, think on that.<\/p>\n

That’s it really… thanks for reading.<\/p>\n

A little information on how we might be able to help<\/strong><\/h3>\n

WHAT IS YOUTH HOMELESSNESS?<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I went to Edinburgh on Tuesday, it’s my favourite city. Near 7pm we dropped into McDonalds – yeah, I know. Outside sat<\/p>\n

Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-622","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-random-thoughts-ramblings"],"yoast_head":"\nPlease watch out for Youth Homeless at this time of year<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"I went to Edinburgh on Tuesday, it's my favourite city. Near 7pm ... 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