YSOP in Washington DC- Week 2

On my trip to DC, I got a greater perspective on the idea of homelessness. Although we were helping the homeless in some way at each of our service sites, I felt more successful and helpful at some than at others. For example, when we cleaned the apartment of an elderly woman in subsidized housing who was at risk of eviction, I felt more accomplished than when I unwrapped the plastic off of boxes of raisins. I think I felt more aware of the help I was providing when I got to see the people I was serving and their reaction to my help. My favorite act of service was the dinner at YSOP, where we cooked, served, and partook in a meal with 40 homeless guests. One thing that struck me last week was the range of the homeless people that we saw. It went from the "pregnant" woman covered in her own feces who spit on Alex, to an eloquent man sitting with his laptop dressed like a businessman. Overall, the week in DC made me think about how much work there is out there and how any little bit helps even if it doesn't feel like you're doing much. Also, actually spending time with the homeless, which I had never done before, was eye-opening because it made me realize how similar most of them are to people who have a home.