After thoughts 1

 Down but not out.

Yesterday was the kind of day I dreaded on the 14 day sleep out. The rain was heavy and incessant. I ran the short distance from my front door to my car, and at work, I ran from the car to the front door.

Some of the places I slept would have been ruled out by yesterday’s rain. The ground would have been soaked and I would have been stupid to sleep in places with puddled water. 

There are days in the Archer Project when we just need to make sure people leave with dry clothes. Keeping dry is part of keeping warm. If I had been sleeping out last night instead of last week I’d have been huddled in a corner of a church porch, most likely sat up. And if I had got so wet during the day I would have spent parts of the night walking round to create body heat.

People who rough sleep tell us about the cold and the wet. Very few words are needed. It’s usually written on their faces and in their body language. A simple, ‘Bloody freezing last night!’ tells us they didn’t sleep well.

I was lucky during my fortnight. Since getting home I’ve noticed how tired I have been. I’m a morning person. It’s when I do my best work. I’m normally up at 6am. Not this week. My alarm went off and I reached for the snooze button, but I wanted much more than a snooze. I am still playing catch-up. 

I don’t think I had one full night of undisturbed sleep in those fourteen nights. I repeatedly woke to move, to get comfortable. But although I knew I was tired, I also knew I came alive when I met people. I enjoyed the companionship. Some people told me I looked better than they had expected.

I meet people everyday who summon the spirit to be cheerful. I know they are tired. I know they struggle with low moods. I know they have stories of serial abuse and neglect. I know the life they lead is incredibly poor. Yet, somehow, maybe, hope remains. We see it in humour, and their appreciation (not every day), for what we and others offer. 
Five days after my sleep out, I think it is this sometimes-hard-to-spot hope that I find incredible and encouraging. An ability to defy all the negatives of life and get on with the next day.

There are somethings I didn’t blog about during my sleep out and I intend to share those over the next few days. I also want to say thank you to everyone who has read these blogs and shared the journey with me. the response has done more for me than you could possibly imagine.

If you want to know more about changing the lives of people who are homeless visit www.archerproject.org.uk 

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