Give Thanks


During the holiday season, everyone is worrying about what they're going to get for Christmas, or what they are going to buy. They start to buy groceries for Thanksgiving and think about all the good food that they're going to eat. But in all the excitement of the season, people don't take enough time out to think about those who are receiving nothing for Christmas. We don't think about some one who may not get a meal.

Well, this year the PG group thought about it and felt sorry for those who are less fortunate than us. We decided to do a food run. A food run is when groups of people get together and make lunches and put thins in bags to give to the homeless. In our bags, we had hats, gloves, toiletries (toothpaste, toothbrush, hand sanitizer, etc) food, candy, snacks, and cards with our names on them.

The food run does not end there. You see we did not just send our bags to a shelter, we went to the parks in downtown Washington, DC and gave them out.

The Experience - When we first left, I will admit that we were scared. The first stop we came to was a large circular park. From first sight all that we saw were large trash bags. Then, we saw three men who appeared to be walking down the street toward the park. We pulled the car over and proceeded to give the men the bags. They were very thankful. One man told us that there were more men in the park.

He walked over to what we thought were trash bags and told them, "Get up, food, get up!" It turned out that there were twelve men, -- all of them grateful.

Next, we came upon a building that had benches beside it. On one of the benches, lay two men -- one with no hat and shoes. There were rats running all around, but the men who lay there did not care and were too cold to even move.

The next man we found digging in the trash can. When we got out and gave him the bag, he looked up into the sky and all he could say was "Thank you." He asked us our names and said that he was going to pray for us. What was so different about this man was that he sounded so educated. He sounded as if he'd been a professor of some sort. This told us that anyone could end up homeless.

Once when we stopped, the police pulled up and wanted to know what we were doing, but when they found out we were giving to the homeless, they told us to "keep up the good work."

The last bag that we gave out was to a man who seemed like he had his whole world in this one cart. After we gave it to him, we watched him push it down the street and realized just how blessed we were to return to our homes.

This food run has left a lasting impression on all who attended. As we talk to some of them, we realized that a lot of things that we complain about, such as not wanting something for dinner because we had it yesterday, can't compare to some of these people not knowing what a leftover is. We thought about how we can get up in the middle of night almost five times because we are thirsty, but some of the people we talked to did not even know what a refrigerator looks like.

So, I say, give thanks for all that you have because it can always be taken away. The youth of Tots and Teens have learned this lesson and we are trying to make a difference in some people's lives.


By Shardae Pressley