The challenge of leading a project like the Jericho Road Project is that much of what I do is now through others rather than getting to do it myself. I mean that I help others to help others! However I started doing this work because I really like working with rough sleepers, alcoholics or in fact anyone who is down trodden and rejected people around them and now I get limited opportunities to do this. Last Wednesday gave me such a moment.
A group of 9 young men from King's Church joined us at the Feast for the evening. I took the opportunity to take 3 of them on a tour of rough sleeping spots in Catford. To be honest I am a little out of touch who is where but I knew enough to know where to go. But after looking though a few car parks and some more specific spots we had met no-one and we were walking back to King's Church, when on the steps of Catford Bridge station we met Neil (don't worry, as always I've not given you the name he told me). This man was drunk and collapsed, looking like he was staying for the night. He didn't know how to get back to his flat, couldn't face the future and encapsulated everything I love about working with drunks. He had great stories to tell of crimes, of prison, the pain he felt about his son going to Afghanistan, he couldn't face sleeping in his flat so he slept in a cemetery. We hit it off immediately. Some of his story made no sense at all, some of the addiction story was scripted from the manuals, he was charming and offensive at the same time. He talked about how hard a man he was, yet all I met was a lonely lost man desperate for hope. He had no problem believing there was a God but there was no peace in his heart. Sure if someone had threatened him, he would have attacked first but all we met was a weak and broken man. So we helped him to get to the correct platform to get a train home.
It was a delight to be doing what I've always loved doing. This week I will follow up with Neil and try to provide help. But the lasting fruit is probably with the 3 young men who were with me. Life looks very different when you view it from the bottom of the pile and for a short while we shared this man's pain, we walked with him and experienced the frustration and confusion he felt. We watched how others reacted to him. I hope that this man's years of destruction will provoke this group of young men to dream big dreams for how they live their lives and how they help others.
Showing posts with label Life in Catford. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Life in Catford. Show all posts
Sunday, 30 October 2011
Sunday, 19 June 2011
Life in Catford - on the buses 3
Living life on the Jericho Road (representing the dangerous and difficult places in our society) rather than hiding away in our houses or our car with the music turned up loud is still on my mind. If social justice means anything it has to mean engagement and with parts of society that are not like me.
Today after church, I got the bus home with my 4 children. My eldest who uses the bus every day sits on his own, happy to disown the presence of his family, whereas my 3 girls sit with me where there were empty seat at the back of the bus! Upon sitting down, the guy next to me, on the phone, tells his listener that I have got on the bus. He uses a term to describe me that I have never heard before and I won't put on this blog in case I find it to be deeply offensive slang. His conversation which he is broadcasting to the whole bus then proceeds to be filled with plenty of foul language. I can deal with that fine, I asked him to watch his language and he agrees and then tells his phone listener (and the bus) that it makes sense because the kids don't need to hear that language. What I was unable to find a solution to, was the constant valuing of women as objects that he has authority over, anyone (thing in his vocabulary) who was female that came into view out of the window got a sexualised comment. This guy had no shame! He might think that children shouldn't hear swearing but he was very happy to let them hear sexualised vocabulary. When he got off the bus my eldest daughter and I started a discussion about his views on women. She told me up to the point he got off, she was desperate to get off the bus and walk! She really hoped that it had gone over the heads of the younger two.
Yesterday I saw a man wearing a T-shirt that read 'made to be laid' - now I find the term 'laid' fairly offensive especially on public display but it was the word 'made' that got me thinking. God made us and one of our key purposes is to procreate. Did this man even know that he was 'made'? The impression was that he was the author and maker of his life and the obvious statement he was saying by wearing this T-shirt was that he had a right to use another person for his own selfish gain. How did we end up here when God made sex for our good?
The sexualisation of young people through clothing and music videos etc has made the headlines recently and I am relieved that there is voice of reason in the midst of this onslaught. Yes the casual acceptance that is given to talking about and display your intentions regarding sex is deeply disturbing.
My task as a Father of a son and three girls who live on the Jericho Road requires my full engagement and now is not the time to hide my head in the sand. Happy Father's Day!!
Today after church, I got the bus home with my 4 children. My eldest who uses the bus every day sits on his own, happy to disown the presence of his family, whereas my 3 girls sit with me where there were empty seat at the back of the bus! Upon sitting down, the guy next to me, on the phone, tells his listener that I have got on the bus. He uses a term to describe me that I have never heard before and I won't put on this blog in case I find it to be deeply offensive slang. His conversation which he is broadcasting to the whole bus then proceeds to be filled with plenty of foul language. I can deal with that fine, I asked him to watch his language and he agrees and then tells his phone listener (and the bus) that it makes sense because the kids don't need to hear that language. What I was unable to find a solution to, was the constant valuing of women as objects that he has authority over, anyone (thing in his vocabulary) who was female that came into view out of the window got a sexualised comment. This guy had no shame! He might think that children shouldn't hear swearing but he was very happy to let them hear sexualised vocabulary. When he got off the bus my eldest daughter and I started a discussion about his views on women. She told me up to the point he got off, she was desperate to get off the bus and walk! She really hoped that it had gone over the heads of the younger two.
Yesterday I saw a man wearing a T-shirt that read 'made to be laid' - now I find the term 'laid' fairly offensive especially on public display but it was the word 'made' that got me thinking. God made us and one of our key purposes is to procreate. Did this man even know that he was 'made'? The impression was that he was the author and maker of his life and the obvious statement he was saying by wearing this T-shirt was that he had a right to use another person for his own selfish gain. How did we end up here when God made sex for our good?
The sexualisation of young people through clothing and music videos etc has made the headlines recently and I am relieved that there is voice of reason in the midst of this onslaught. Yes the casual acceptance that is given to talking about and display your intentions regarding sex is deeply disturbing.
My task as a Father of a son and three girls who live on the Jericho Road requires my full engagement and now is not the time to hide my head in the sand. Happy Father's Day!!
Wednesday, 2 February 2011
Life in Catford - On the buses 2
Well, I am still not allowed to cycle or drive. Hopefully on Thursday I will be given the green light to get back on a bike (and start driving), in the meantime I have borrowed a training bike to strengthen my knee. However to get about I am still using the buses a lot. So here a few more observations -
There are many languages are spoken in the world and most are spoken in the buses of Catford.
Sometimes I am the only white person on the bus. I suddenly become very conscious of the colour of my skin.
The bus is great way to meet old friends and make new ones!
So as you can see I will miss my bus adventure, miss bumping into Bob the Big issue salesman, miss bumping into the man who crashed his car into a parked car near my house. Although I won't miss the over crowding or the times the bus driver will not pick you up because his bus is already overcrowded.
Instead I will return to cycling where I will try to go faster than the buses!!
There are many languages are spoken in the world and most are spoken in the buses of Catford.
Sometimes I am the only white person on the bus. I suddenly become very conscious of the colour of my skin.
The bus is great way to meet old friends and make new ones!
One evening a man, who I did not know, sat next to me with his can of
Tennants super strong, he says "you'll have to put up with me for a few
stops."
I introduce myself, he tells me his name.
He tells me he is off to a friends for a bit of herbal happiness.
I tell him I'm off to King's Church.
He tells me that they run the Feast at King's Church.
I ask him if he has ever been - he says no but his friend goes. He tells me her life story. So then I told him that I run the Feast.
So as you can see I will miss my bus adventure, miss bumping into Bob the Big issue salesman, miss bumping into the man who crashed his car into a parked car near my house. Although I won't miss the over crowding or the times the bus driver will not pick you up because his bus is already overcrowded.
Instead I will return to cycling where I will try to go faster than the buses!!
Friday, 14 January 2011
Life in Catford - On the buses
My knee operation took place on the 20th December and therefore I have been living a very different pace of life since then. I have been using the buses to get to work and hospital appointments so here is a blog on life in Catford - on the buses.
There are 5 different bus routes (the 124, 284, 181, 202 and the 160) that I have used this week to make the journey to or from work. At times the buses travel through Catford at walking pace and definitely slower than the bicycle but for someone like me who is now walking very slowly and not able to drive or cycle the buses are great!
It is a great place for meeting people, some I know, others that I just get talking to. People are very friendly, yes even in Catford. I like the social side of buses but I found this morning that it is a challenge to write on a notepad whilst on the buses. I had some thoughts that I wanted to write down but such is the constant movement and start/stop nature of buses it is almost impossible to read what I had written. And also for my recovering knee the buses are a challenge due to being thrown all over the place when standing up. At those moments I need my crutches mostly to show to others that I have a need to sit down.
Buses are usually busy which leaves me with one big mystery of the buses in Catford. There are very few adverts inside the buses and most of the spaces are taken with 'how to behave well on the buses'. However on the outside there are loads of adverts, on the back and sides of buses and at the bus stops. It is obvious advertisers don't like to advertise inside the buses. Perhaps this because advertisers don't travel inside the buses or maybe it's because the people inside are not regarded as important enough! Admittedly there are lot of students and people with freedom passes but when there so many people inside with nothing to do but look at the sights of Catford they may well take notice of adverts. Churches often advertise on the back of buses but I've never seen churches advertised inside a bus. Perhaps those who make these sorts of decisions should get inside a bus themselves. Travelling by bus is not cheap so why the discrepancy?
In a matter of weeks I will be back on my bike and my days of bus travel will be over. There is much I will miss but I will be financially much better off with the bike.
There are 5 different bus routes (the 124, 284, 181, 202 and the 160) that I have used this week to make the journey to or from work. At times the buses travel through Catford at walking pace and definitely slower than the bicycle but for someone like me who is now walking very slowly and not able to drive or cycle the buses are great!
It is a great place for meeting people, some I know, others that I just get talking to. People are very friendly, yes even in Catford. I like the social side of buses but I found this morning that it is a challenge to write on a notepad whilst on the buses. I had some thoughts that I wanted to write down but such is the constant movement and start/stop nature of buses it is almost impossible to read what I had written. And also for my recovering knee the buses are a challenge due to being thrown all over the place when standing up. At those moments I need my crutches mostly to show to others that I have a need to sit down.
Buses are usually busy which leaves me with one big mystery of the buses in Catford. There are very few adverts inside the buses and most of the spaces are taken with 'how to behave well on the buses'. However on the outside there are loads of adverts, on the back and sides of buses and at the bus stops. It is obvious advertisers don't like to advertise inside the buses. Perhaps this because advertisers don't travel inside the buses or maybe it's because the people inside are not regarded as important enough! Admittedly there are lot of students and people with freedom passes but when there so many people inside with nothing to do but look at the sights of Catford they may well take notice of adverts. Churches often advertise on the back of buses but I've never seen churches advertised inside a bus. Perhaps those who make these sorts of decisions should get inside a bus themselves. Travelling by bus is not cheap so why the discrepancy?
In a matter of weeks I will be back on my bike and my days of bus travel will be over. There is much I will miss but I will be financially much better off with the bike.
Sunday, 20 June 2010
Life in Catford 4
Last Friday I went to visit one of our houses in Murillo Road and it happened to be about 4 O'clock which I discovered is when the post school trouble is at its most visible. I passed Catford where there was a large police presence and a reasonable large crowd with mostly school children. I then travelled onto Lewisham where there was similar scene outside McDonalds only larger and had a more sinister feel to it, the police horse was in the middle of a large crowd. It felt like trouble at a Festival or after a football match when you can almost smell the tension in the air. Because of this the buses were all backed up and unable to move. Once again I was grateful for being on the bike and cycling free of the trouble.
Sunday, 13 June 2010
Life in Catford 3
As a friend, who had lived in some of the major cities of the world, said Catford has the most police and ambulance sirens. Day and night the emergency services are working flat out. Yesterday this was what I saw on the way into work the morning traffic was stopped as a man was stretched away from what looked like being knocked down by a bus. Obviously the slighest hold up means that whole traffic system is messed up. Obviously accompanied by numerous sirens in the area.
I love my bike, it is the only way to really get about in South east London!
On the way home the centre of Catford is a scene of the police arresting a number of men outside the costcutter, which is a very common place for being arrested. So the lesson is if you are committing crime don't do it outside the costcutter! By the time I had travelled home (5-10 minutes) there was another police incident, where a car had been stopped.
Life in Catford ... it's noisy!
I love my bike, it is the only way to really get about in South east London!
On the way home the centre of Catford is a scene of the police arresting a number of men outside the costcutter, which is a very common place for being arrested. So the lesson is if you are committing crime don't do it outside the costcutter! By the time I had travelled home (5-10 minutes) there was another police incident, where a car had been stopped.
Life in Catford ... it's noisy!
Friday, 26 March 2010
Life in Catford 2 - Praying Man
Recently I walked out of the Housing Benefit office in Catford to hear the shouts of a man standing by the bus stops. I have never seen him before. He was shouting at people walking by, at the cars and especially a little old lady waiting patiently for her bus. As you may expect the language was unpleasant and often sexual in it's content. As I have come to expect no one does anything! People pass on by as if this is normal everyday behaviour - Fear results in silence.
I decide that I will talk to him. I am always friendly and confident when I talk to people like this. He immediately backs away and shouts very loudly,"you're a praying man, why do you pray to God" - at this point I'm thinking why does mental instability and openess to the spirit go so close -
[14 years ago on a train a man was running up and down the train throwing all the rubbish out of the windows and he was shouting loudly of course. When I spoke to him and introduce myself he replied, "you're not going to convert me"]
Somehow this abusive man in Catford was acting 'prophetically', that was until he called me and everyone else "a terrorist". At that point he walks across the road and began shouting at a new bunch of 'pray-ers and terrorists'
I decide that I will talk to him. I am always friendly and confident when I talk to people like this. He immediately backs away and shouts very loudly,"you're a praying man, why do you pray to God" - at this point I'm thinking why does mental instability and openess to the spirit go so close -
[14 years ago on a train a man was running up and down the train throwing all the rubbish out of the windows and he was shouting loudly of course. When I spoke to him and introduce myself he replied, "you're not going to convert me"]
Somehow this abusive man in Catford was acting 'prophetically', that was until he called me and everyone else "a terrorist". At that point he walks across the road and began shouting at a new bunch of 'pray-ers and terrorists'
Wednesday, 10 March 2010
Life in Catford 1
As I cycled to Lewisham yesterday, I realised that I miss being around the streets of Catford. I used to go out every week but recently I have been out far less. I just get to see people that I see nowhere else! Yesterday, for example, after passing a fight between 3 men (there was already a group of people shouting at them so this time I carried on cycling) I met a guy who I haven't seen in over a year, sadly he was yellow, his head and his eyes. (almost Simpson cartoon coloured - when I told my children they laughed that the Simpson's are alcoholics!) Seeing this guy was a sad sight but I was so pleased to see him again. My guess is that there is little hope for his life but I do know that he knows Jesus and therefore he has hope eternal!
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