I did something extremely risky tonight. To be honest, I’m still shaking.
A homeless woman wandered up to me on my porch today. I was having hookah and she asked “Are you a boy or a girl?” And then she asked “is that hookah?” I said yes and invited her onto my porch for some—
A lot of us are just 2 bad months away from homelessness, and the way this country treats homeless people is abhorrent. I may not have much myself, but I try to help and do good where I can. The world could do well with a little more compassion. I’m no saint, but I care a lot.
But she denied and told me she wanted to travel light. She left her phone behind with me to charge and went out on a walk. She came back just a few minutes ago and collected her phone. She thanked me again and went on her way.
I’m still shaking. But I wouldn’t let her know it—
Also, she offered to wash my dishes. I told her no but that I appreciated the gesture. Hell she even offered to share her Cheetos with me too.
This stranger was ready to share what she had with me, even if it wasn’t much.
I was startled for sure. But just this once, I played it casual. I gave her some water, offered her some food, and put her phone on my charger and she began to cry. She said “People have mistreated you haven’t they? That’s why you’re being so nice to me right now”—
And I admitted yeah. And that I knew what it was like to be homeless too. She just sat with me and cried. She apologized for crying and I reassured her it was ok. That she was safe. She thanked me up and down. I tried to offer her a lot of things that I didn’t need—
She was back this evening to charge her phone and she accidentally fell asleep on my couch. I let her rest awhile while her phone charged. My dog barked and accidentally woke her, but she collected her things, thanked me again, and left.
I’m sure I’ll see her again :)
She came and sat down. She seemed pretty messed up on maybe alcohol or weed. She explained she was homeless, but had graduated college in 2020. She started opening up and chatting with me. At one point I went in my house to grab her some water and she followed me in—
A little update!! We spent more time together today. I gave her a coffee and let her have some more hookah on the porch. I learned more about her background and her life, and we related on a lot. She gifted me some beer, which was a really sweet gesture. —
I complimented the scarf she wore and she told me it was her mother’s. And without hesitation, she threw it over me and said “Here try it on! It matches your hair” (I have blue hair)
She also correctly identified my dog’s breed, which was super impressive to me. —
My dog Juno’s breed is not super common in the states, so for her to recognize the distinct breed, I was PUMPED LOL
And Juno was so so sweet with her and gave her many kisses and tail wags 💙
If anyone ever puts my artwork into AI, I will personally come to your house and dropkick you in the teeth
Artists, you’re gonna wanna blacklist this chud for blatantly disregarding an artist’s TOS, and taking such beautiful art and turning it into AI slop.
