Journal Entries Week 6/10 – 6/13

Journal Entries Week 6/10 – 6/13

Tuesday:         My first day volunteering at the Denver Rescue Mission was incredibly eye opening. I began at the “Crossing” facility, in North Denver. This facility houses multiple programs designed to house and feed people suffering from addiction and homelessness. All who take part in the program do so in order to clean up their lives, and are there anywhere from one year to three, as they complete multiple stages of rehabilitation geared at socialization into society. Even those working within the kitchen and administrative staff were, at one time or another, part of the rehabilitation programs present. This meant that my presence in the kitchen served a dual purpose for my Summer Practicum project: I was able to do a service for a population of recently homeless individuals and I was able to do some first-hand research on the stories behind the men and women who had been there. I began evaluating the causes which bring someone into homelessness, and what psychological factors might be responsible. Though the nature and nurture debate rages over characteristic such as intelligence and disposition, the potential effects of each model may have effects on how a person’s life plays out. Nature and/or nurture may even lead someone to fall into homelessness or lack the ability to escape it when born into disadvantageous circumstances.

Wednesday:    On the 11^th, I began volunteering at a rather different location than the one I had been at the previous day. At the Lawrence Street Center, rather than a live-in community of recently homeless individuals, people living on the streets nearby come for food and shelter each day, but do not commit to any long term programs, like at the Crossing. Some who come through often appear to be strung out on one form of addictive substance or another. Others seem disabled physically or mentally. Some seem all but nonresponsive. But the most surprising group of people included those who were completely normal. But it really should not be so surprising. Perfectly normal people experience bad luck. Perfectly normal people make mistakes. For the most part, the people volunteering were like the people on staff, who were like the people who walked through the food line. My grasp of homelessness expanded with each tray I handed out. Experiences with populations facing homelessness serve to dispel many ideas and perceptions which society tends to hold. Though debate still exists about what drives people into unfortunate circumstances, a commonly held belief is that those who have strong wills and positive characteristics succeed and that those who do not fail. Yet those at the Denver Rescue Mission served to immediately dispel this as a case of fundamental attribution errors. Many could have been in my place, had only circumstances been different. Assuming that the position that any homeless person is in is predominantly their own fault and not due to situational and environmental causes is as mistaken as attributing any one attribute to a race or culture.

Thursday:        On Thursday, I returned to the Lawrence Street Shelter again, though for a much longer period of time. I served multiple meals and worked closely with members of the staff and individuals who were a part of the programs at the Crossing but worked in the shelter. From the opinions of those working beside me, I gleaned that those who did not participate in the programs offered did so for two reasons. Either they still thought they could escape the streets by themselves or they were comfortable with where they were. Some tried to participate in the programs and failed, but the young men who supervised me seemed to feel confident that they would make it off of the streets and into a better life. There was a predominant idea, however, that it was not simply social loafing which kept people from success. After preparing each meal, as food was served, some familiar faces came through the line, as well as some new ones. Caring for these strangers was easy for the Denver Rescue Mission, and they did not expect anything in return. This served to further support my theory against the fundamental attribution error, and help me begin to empathize further with those around me.

Friday:             On the last day of the week, I volunteered once more at the shelter, but also had occasion to talk with a chaplain who supervised much of the programming at the facility. I had time for a short interview about what he did at the shelter and whether he knew of doctors whom I could spend some time with. He was very helpful, giving me a broader conception of the Lawrence Street Center and recommending that I spend time in the clinic nearby. My week finished with another meal prepared and served. I began to think about altruism, and whether it could ever exist in the context that psychology defines it. Many who helped the homeless did so because they were required to, in one way or another. The staff cared, but also earned a livelihood doing so. While I myself volunteered and met volunteers around me, it occurred to me that even those who did so willfully may have derived a pleasure from helping others. This, in an abstract sense, still invalidates requirements for truly altruistic pursuits. If someone feels the need to help others, even if simply to feel some sort of warm feeling within themselves, than fulfilling that need may simply be another selfish action. Though it serves a purpose, helping others may never truly be done only to help others.