May 30, 2024 • 42 mins
Last week we had Walker Hayes on for the 3rd time and this week we have Steven Young back for a 3rd time. Steven is the Founder of 'Home Street Home' and he has a very bittersweet story of redemption (he was homeless for 5 years and then 10 years ago made a change and started a ministry serving the homeless!) You'll hear some of Steven's story weaved into today's episode, but if you want more of his fascinating life story in full....listen to his 2 previous chats with Amy: ep. 96 (from Dec 2019) and ep. 256 (from June 2021)
The theme of today's episode was a surprise to Steven and it's truly special hearing him share in this way (through 4 different poems/stories....a gift of his that Amy wanted to highlight) and the discussions of hope + healing that follow each one. The 4 poems/stories are linked below if you want to reference later or share with others:
1- May 1st, What Was Almost the Beginning of the End
4- That Still Small Voice
Amy & Steven also talk about ways you can support our homeless friends during the summer months or any time of year for that matter. One of the ways won't cost you a penny. :)
Learn more about Steven & Home Street Home Ministries:
Online: homestreethometn.org
Steven's Book: From Chains to Change: One Man's Journey from God-Hater to God-Follower
HOST: Amy Brown // RadioAmy.com // @RadioAmy
See omnystudio.com/listener for priva
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:13):
Cast up little food for yourself life.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
Oh it's pretty bad.
Speaker 3 (00:19):
Hey, it's pretty beautiful, man, beautiful for.
Speaker 1 (00:22):
That for a little more exciting, said, he can't your
kicking with full thing with Amy Brown.
Speaker 2 (00:32):
Happy Thursday, four Things, Amy here and I have a
very special episode for you today with a returning guest.
Last week we had Walker Hayes on for the third time,
and this week we have Stephen Young back for a
third time.
Speaker 3 (00:46):
Hey, Stephen.
Speaker 2 (00:47):
Hey, Stephen is the founder of Home Street Home, and
he has the most amazingly bittersweet story of redemption that
I've ever heard.
Speaker 3 (00:56):
It's a beautiful one.
Speaker 2 (00:57):
He found himself homeless about fifteen years ago, and he
was almost for five years, and then ten years ago
made a change and started a ministry serving the homeless.
And what I'm gonna do for everybody, Stephen, is I'm
gonna link our previous two episodes so people can go
back and hear more of your story because there's so
much there. I know we'll get into some of it today,
(01:19):
but there's just so much you were on back in
twenty nineteen. That was episode ninety six. I'll link it
in the show notes. And then our second chat was
twenty twenty one, that was episode two fifty six, and
then today this is episode five, one hundred and sixty three,
so time, Yeah, we'll have to have you back for.
Speaker 3 (01:37):
A round seven hundred or something.
Speaker 2 (01:39):
Again, those will be linked in the show notes, and
again you're gonna hear some of his story weaved into
today's episode. And I mentioned right at the start this
is a very special episode because Stephen is an amazing
poet and writer. And he doesn't know this yet, but
that's what I'm highlighting about you today. Stephen, your poems,
your stories, and they're going to move y'all. I'm so
(02:01):
thankful you're here. When Stephen has come on in the past,
I get emails. I just pulled a few Stephen, and
just so you know, this is one of the emails
from Nicolette back in the day, just listen to the
podcast with Stephen Young was brought to tears.
Speaker 3 (02:15):
This one is from Anne.
Speaker 2 (02:16):
I'm not reading the entire emails, but you know, Anne,
I just finished listening to your podcast with Stephen Young,
and I have to say I'm still sitting here on
my kitchen floor with tears in my eyes. Another one
from Kimberly, thank you for your podcast. Your interview with
Stephen Young was so amazing. This is so important and inspiring.
We needed that interview. I have more here, I think
(02:38):
one from someone in New Zealand that listened. She said
it's one of the episodes that has changed her life.
So Stephen, thank you for coming back on.
Speaker 1 (02:48):
Thanks for having me.
Speaker 3 (02:49):
I printed out some of your recent poems and stories
right there that These are ones that you published on
the Home Street Home Instagram and I would love for
you to read them for us. It's your writing, should
be your voice. And then of course we'll talk a
little bit after each point. Are you in, I'm in
all right.
Speaker 1 (03:06):
Well.
Speaker 2 (03:06):
The one I want to start with is called May first,
What was almost the beginning of the end. And again
we'll do four of these to fit with the theme.
Speaker 1 (03:17):
May first, fifteen years ago, what was almost the beginning
of the end. Over the years, my life crashed and
burned many many times, but this day was unlike any other.
It was the last day I would have a place
to call home for almost five years. It was a
day marked with panic, shame, fear, tears, and a sense
(03:43):
of loss I had never experienced before. And it wasn't
a material loss. Over the years, I had gone from
having everything to having nothing more than once, but this
time it was different. I felt I had lost all purpose.
I had lost my place in the world in society.
(04:05):
I no longer belonged to anyone, or any place or anywhere.
I was suddenly homeless, and I had no clue what
to do. I had less than forty dollars to my name,
and all my belongings were packed in a gym bag
and a couple of croker sacks. Where do I go?
(04:26):
What's going to happen to me? How am I going
to survive? As night fell and I sat in the dark,
the fear grew stronger. Then the tears started flowing, as
shame took a seat beside fear. I had never felt
more alone than I did at that moment. It was
(04:46):
the beginning of some of the darkest years of my life,
and I just didn't see a way out. I had
used up my bag of tricks. My past was now
my present, and my future seemed to have complete disappeared.
The fact that I get to tell you about it
today is nothing short of a miracle. If it weren't
(05:07):
for God, all those fears would have become reality. That
is why I share this, because I want you to
know there is always a way out. If you are struggling,
if you see no way out, if you are sitting
alone in the dark and wondering if the light will
ever shine again, don't give up, Never give up, because
(05:31):
what I thought was the end in reality was the beginning.
Sure at that moment, my life had gone from bad
to really bad, and I was convinced that it was
only going to get worse, that even my life being
okay had been taken off the table for good. I
(05:51):
was wrong. Did it get worse? Yes, it did a
lot worse, But in the end, worse became better than
it's ever been. Hang in there, don't give up, because
you're better than it's ever been. Is waiting for you
on the other side. Be blessed and always much love.
Speaker 2 (06:10):
I love that you're better than it's ever been is
waiting for you on the other side. And it is
just to give people some perspective of a lot worse.
I mean even that alone, being left with no other
option and forty dollars in your Kruger sacks, Like, is
there a worse moment that comes to mind? Do you
have a load that you'd be willing to share.
Speaker 1 (06:31):
I have to go back to Christmas Eve of twenty thirteen.
At the beginning of the year, I'd made a promise
to myself that I would never spend another holiday season
alone on the streets. Up to that point, had done
practically everything I could think of to try to get
off the streets. As we've talked before, it's not easy
(06:52):
and nobody can do it alone. They've got to have help.
And I was tired, and each day that and by
it seemed I was getting closer to that being the
life that I was going to live forever. And I
couldn't handle that. I didn't want to handle that, I
didn't want to deal with it. So a little bit
(07:13):
before the holiday season, I realized that the promise I
had made to myself at the beginning of year not
to spend another holiday season on the streets, the only
out I could see to keep that from happening was
to end it on my terms. And so I checked
in to Hallmark in on Trinity Lane in Nashville, Tennessee.
(07:37):
And that is done with a sense of sarcasm, because
the room was nineteen dollars. I think so that tells
you how luxurious it wasn't but it was Hotel California
for me. I was going to check in, and I
had no desire to check out. I had made the
decision that I was going to end it, and I
(07:58):
was okay with that to a degree. But I realized
that that's how far I had sunk. But for the
grace of God, I would have succeeded. People have asked me,
and we've talked about it, and well what happened? Well,
I wish I could tell you, because I went from
sitting at that little table with the pills in front
(08:19):
of me, a few letters that I had written to
a few people, not knowing if they would ever get
them or read them. I was ready. I was done hurting.
I was done going to bed at night, falling asleep,
hoping I didn't wake up the next morning. The next
thing I know, I hear a knock on the door,
and I'm startled. I'm shocked, and I'm going, who's knocking
(08:43):
at my door? Because nobody knew I was there. And
I had looked at the clock earlier that was beside
the bed, and it was nine o'clock Christmas Eve, and
I thought good a time as any well, when that
knock on the door came and it startled me. I
was sitting there for a minute, and then another knock
(09:04):
followed it, only this time there was a voice with
the knock, and it said, sir, are you staying or
are you checking out? And as I looked at the door,
I caught the clock again and it set eleven o'clock.
But it wasn't eleven o'clock Christmas Eve. It was eleven
(09:27):
o'clock Christmas Morning, and I was like, what the heck?
I cleaned my language up. I think I used something
a little more colorful back then. And I was kind
of in a state of shock, and I reached into
my pocket and I pulled out what money I had left,
and I counted it out and I said, I'm going
(09:49):
to stay another night. I'll come down and pay in
just a minute. So I did, and that was the
beginning of my journey back. I would like to to
tell you at that moment that was my come to
Jesus minute, but it wasn't. I wasn't there yet because,
as you know, knowing my past, God and I did
(10:09):
not get along for many, many years. But it was
the beginning and March of twenty fourteen, I walked off
the streets. So my lowest turned into my highest, and
I've not looked back. What I thought was me giving
up was really me letting go. And it wasn't until
(10:32):
I was ready to let go of trying to fix
things that God saw the opening and he took it.
Speaker 2 (10:40):
To fast forward you fourteen hours that you can't explain
right right where you're like, how did I get here?
Speaker 1 (10:46):
Right? And he took that opportunity. And I tell people now,
whether they're homeless or people that I counsel with and
people that I know that are down, I go, you
wanted to change, let go, let go of the past,
let go of the pain, let go of the hurt,
because until you do, there's no room for anything else.
(11:09):
And there's got to be room.
Speaker 2 (11:11):
And thankfully, y'all, you were not successful no in twenty
and thirteen, because the lives you've been able to impact
since then are countless at this point. And you celebrated
your sixty eighth birthday this year. Thanks for reminding me, yes, yes, hey,
we got to celebrate that because you know, come a
(11:31):
long way, yes, from that hotel room, which I think
is a perfect setup into another poem that you posted
that really moved me, called sixty eight years of Yesterday,
So I'd love for you to read that one next.
Speaker 1 (11:45):
Sixty eight years of Yesterday. There was a time when
the odds of me reaching this point weren't very good.
Yet here I am, and in the quiet early morning
hours before the sun puts a spotlight on this day,
I can't help but look back and try to put
my pass in perspective and ponder what may lay I had.
I was so self absorbed that I never considered what
(12:07):
it would feel like to reach this stage of my life.
I never thought I would, and I wasn't sure I
wanted to. Most people spend decades preparing for their later years.
I spent that time living only for the moment, with
total disregard for the future. Now I find myself hoping
I'm around for a while longer. Did life go the
(12:31):
way I had hoped or planned? I can't say, because
I wasn't much for doing either. I think that luxury
disappeared from my life when I was twelve. But as
I sit here and try to describe it, I'm transported
through the years on a whirlwind recollection that seems surreal
at best and unreal at worst. Regrets. Oh yeah, Still,
(12:55):
I'm blessed because I have lived long enough to change
my story. It wasn't until recently that I questioned or
cared if my existence would have counted for something. Would
I pass on without having had a positive impact in
this world or leave having made a difference, even if
just in a very small way. I wasted so many years.
(13:19):
But I thank God for never giving up on me
and for allowing me time to hopefully make a difference
one that matters. Do I miss those days? Not at all.
I'm still here and in a better place than I've
ever been. I've made peace with my past and found
strength in the forgiveness, mercy, and grace God has shown
(13:41):
and continues to show. I appreciate each day in a
way I never could before, and I feel I have
a purpose beyond myself. No, it's not always great, but
for the most part, it's damn good, better than it's
ever been, and I cannot help but believe the best
(14:02):
is yet to come. I pray that with whatever time
I have left, I can in a good way touch others'
lives the way so many have touched mine that through
my experience and example, others can come to know that
it's never too late and once again be blessed and
(14:23):
as always much love.
Speaker 2 (14:26):
So you mentioned in this one did life go the
way I'd hoped or planned? I can't say, because I
wasn't much for doing either. I think that luxury disappeared
from my life when I was twelve, and that's part
of your backstory that people can learn if they go
listen to other episodes that you've been on. You also
have a book from Chains to Change, One Man's Journey
(14:48):
from God Hater to God Follower. I'll link that in
the show notes. You've definitely had many, many reasons to
turn from God, and I think that or just even humanity, right,
it's not even just in your faith. It was someone
in the church that let you down, but then also
family too when you tried to speak up and you
(15:10):
weren't believed. And you know, I posted something on my
Instagram earlier this week of you know, if you could
tell yourself three words, your eighteen year old self, just
three words, because I had asked last week that's one
of the questions I asked Walker and he said I
would tell my eighteen year old self run to Jesus right,
those are his three words. And I posted that and
(15:31):
I had people share their three words, and I have
loved reading the three words so much, going through and
seeing what people are saying, and one of the comments
that stood out to me, and you know, I replied
to them that I'm so sorry that that was their experience,
but they had a similar experience to you with the church.
And I just know that there's other people listening that
(15:52):
have been betrayed by the faith system their family, and
I hope that they hear your heart and know that
it can get better and there can be healing within yourself,
because that's going to be something.
Speaker 3 (16:06):
I know you're earlier to.
Speaker 2 (16:08):
Hear someone say let go, and of course you've lived
it and you're like, you just you have to let
go and make space for the healing. And I just
know there may be one person that's like, Okay, easy
for you to say.
Speaker 1 (16:21):
True, easy to say, real, real, hard to do. And
I don't ever want to sell someone suffering short, because
I had so many people in my life sell my
suffering short and they wanted to play the blame game
and put all the blame on me.
Speaker 3 (16:38):
Meanwhile, you were a child.
Speaker 1 (16:40):
Yes I was, but even as an adult I had
my fair share of blame. There were times that, in
those still quiet moments, I knew that I had become
my own worst enemy. But I was also real good
at rationalizing why. But the thing is this, when we
(17:03):
stop letting others define who we are, who we're going
to be, and take the moment to decide for ourselves
the answer to those questions. And this may upset some
people when I say this, I had to come to
terms with the man in the mirror because then the
(17:26):
man in the mirror over the years did almost, if
not the same amount, and if I really looked hard,
maybe a little more damage than any anybody else did
to me. And yes, I was extremely blessed on that
(17:46):
Christmas Eve that God didn't allow me to do what
I had set out to do. He intervened, and like
I said at the time, I would love to say
that was my come to Jesus moment. The real change
was this when it all happened, I didn't know why
it happened, I didn't know how it happened, but for
(18:08):
the first time in my life, there was a peace
inside of me, in my heart that I never felt before,
and I didn't know how, I didn't know when, I
didn't know why, but I knew it was going to
be okay. And cry, cuse, scream, pray, do whatever you
(18:32):
have to do because you need to and you have
the right to. But don't ever think it's too late.
Don't ever give up, because you are somebody. You deserve
to be happy. You can touch other people's lives, because
(18:56):
for every one of us that have gone through whatever
it is we're going through, there's somebody out there whose
path is going to collide with ours that can relate,
that is looking for someone that can relate to them.
And that's been the true joy of my life for
(19:18):
the last ten years, is opening that door so others
can share their pain. They're hurt, they're suffering, their insecurities,
et cetera, et cetera, et.
Speaker 2 (19:32):
Cetera, which the opening up and the sharing and the
connection and that with others can help stop the cycle. Yes, which,
thank you for your honesty in saying, yeah, I was
hurt in a lot of ways, but also because I
was hurt in this way, I continued to hurt and
pass that hurt along. Yes, you know, until you started
(19:55):
to find the peace, make the peace, find the healing,
open up for that. So thank you for saying that.
I know that we've all been there, and there's that saying.
Hurt people, hurt people, and even when we're in a
place of healing, we are still very capable of hurting people.
Speaker 3 (20:08):
That is for sure. I know that myself.
Speaker 2 (20:12):
But yeah, you've created such a safe space for a
group of people that they don't have many people that
they can talk to, and you have been consistent some
of them. I know.
Speaker 3 (20:25):
You have to show up and you have to work hard.
Speaker 2 (20:27):
You have to continue to show them like Hi, I'm here,
I'm here, I'm here.
Speaker 1 (20:33):
And they don't make it easy.
Speaker 3 (20:35):
Right, you know.
Speaker 2 (20:36):
So, whoever that is in your life for you, your
commitment is to the homeless community because you've been there
and that is your gift. You know how to connect
with them like a lot of other people don't. And
of course there's other people out there in organizations that
have the gift of connection with the homeless community, but
you're one that's doing it here in Nashville, and I've
witnessed it and it's a beautiful thing. But just encouraging
(20:57):
people to think of like, where can you show up
for people? What's your story that can connect because we
all have a story. I feel like that helps give
more purpose and meaning to things that we've been through
and what it's made possible, and so then it doesn't
feel wasted.
Speaker 1 (21:13):
Right. Something that I like to say a lot is
you're hurting can help somebody heal. I was there. We've
all been there where you just felt that you were
totally alone, that what you were going through nobody else
had ever gone through before, nobody could understand what you
were going through. And if you can ever get to
(21:35):
the point where you can share that hurting. And it's
not easy to do, even for me now, because sometimes
I have to in sharing that hurt, I feel that
hurt again. But what I've realized is when God puts
me in the position to do that, the person that
(21:57):
I'm sharing with starts to heal because what happens in
that moment is we find out that I'm not alone.
There is somebody that understands there is somebody that knows
where I'm coming from. And that is the first step
in the healing process for a lot of people is
(22:19):
to know that they're no longer alone.
Speaker 2 (22:21):
Do you know what three words you would say to
your eighteen year old self? Do you know what three
words you would say to your eighteen year old self?
Speaker 1 (22:40):
You will survive and until that Christmas Eve. I don't
think I would have ever used those three words in
any reference. But looking back now, and you've heard me
say this, I wouldn't want anybody to have to go
through what I went through, but I would go through
(23:02):
it all over again, knowing where I was going to
end up. That's easy to say looking back, But the
reason I say that is I want the people out
there who need that encouragement to realize possibility is real,
(23:22):
happiness is real, peace is real.
Speaker 2 (23:28):
And there are seasons of life, which I think is
the perfect transition into the third point I'd like for
you to read, which is called when the petals die.
Speaker 1 (23:40):
This is a recent one. When the petals die, flowers grow,
bud and bloom, and eventually the petals start to die
and follow away. But is that the end of the story.
Of course not, As we all know, the flower is
just going through a season, and we can look forward
(24:02):
to it coming back in blooming and again because its
roots are strong and it will be fed and nurtured
along the way to ensure its return. We are more
like flowers than you might think. We too grow, bud
and bloom, and we too go through seasons, the ones
where life is good, full of color and beauty, and
(24:25):
every day seems to have at least one joyful experience.
Then there are the moments when life gets us down,
when we suffer a failure or experience a loss, the
times we lose sight of things, veer off course and
make a wrong turn, when the fact that we are
imperfect becomes all too clear, and it appears as though
(24:48):
everything we do is wrong. Mistakes seem to define nearly
every decision, and the light has grown so dim that
darkness becomes our constant companion. Yes, we all have those
seasons when our petals die, but remember, all is never
lost unless we choose not to bloom again. If we
(25:12):
allow ourselves to be nurtured by faith, if we feed
upon the wisdom of our beliefs and follow our inner compass,
our roots will grow strong. Our ability to bounce back
to rise from the ashes will be a testament to
our resilience and strength, And like the flower, we will
(25:32):
bloom again standing tall and full of life. A testament
to the power of faith and self belief, because like
the flower and all of God's creations, we are each
beautifully and wonderfully made.
Speaker 2 (25:49):
So that line the light has grown so dim that
darkness becomes our constant companion. That makes you think of
the fourth and final thing I've got for you to read,
which isn't a poem, but it's a post that you
put up. The picture was a screenshot of a message
you got from a homeless man that you would just helped.
(26:11):
So I'll set up what he said in the text
and the screen shot, and then you can read what
you wrote, which I'm calling what you wrote that still
Small Voice, because again it's not a poem, it's it's
a post that you put up, and I just thought
it was a great representation of looking out for people,
being consistent, showing up gratitude, you know, even if it's
(26:36):
somewhere like you know, you're always looking, You're always on
the prop Like when I was out with you on Saturday,
it's like you're always like, Hey, who's that guy over there?
Speaker 3 (26:43):
What's that guy walking?
Speaker 2 (26:44):
Like we'd be driving along and you would see clearly
a homeless person on a bike. You're like, oh, wait,
I know him, but why is he riding his bike
that way? His tent is that way? And then you know,
you stopped, roll down the window talk to him. And
then when I talked to you about it later, you're like, yeah,
well where he was got flooded and now he's riding
his bike and you're on the prow. You're looking for
(27:04):
ways and against that you're consistent, And I feel like
for this particular man, it was a light in that darkness.
For him, this exchange with you, darkness is likely his
constant companion. But then y'all's interaction was a little bit
of light, you know. So here's what he wrote, Stephen.
(27:25):
I just want you to know how much I appreciate
everything that you have done for me. After I set
up the new tent and move my stuff over to it,
I just sat inside and cried.
Speaker 3 (27:37):
I'm so grateful for what you have done. God bless you.
Speaker 2 (27:41):
And that was again the picture, and then you can
read the caption that you wrote for it.
Speaker 1 (27:46):
I had been under the bridge a dozen times and
never found anyone, so it'd been a while since I
stopped and checked. I drove by it at least two
or three times a week, but like I said, I
never found anyone. I wasn't even going to cross it.
I was going to turn right before I got to it,
but something told me to check again, and there he was.
(28:08):
He was startled when I called out, and seemed a
little leary, so I told him who I was and
who I was with, leading him to lower his defenses,
and once we started talking, it wasn't long before I
found out how he ended up there. He had a
camp not far from the bridge. It was just him,
no one else, and the bad weather over the past
(28:30):
few weeks had taken its toll on its tent. He
did what he could to keep it together, but mother
nature eventually won out. He didn't have a phone, so
he couldn't call anyone, but as he said, I don't
know who I would have called. I got no one,
So he salvaged what he could and headed for the bridge.
(28:51):
He had been there several days, sleeping on the rocks
with nothing but a sleeping bag. That's when I told
him to sit tight and that I would return shortly.
He had that look in his eyes that said, yeah, right,
I've heard that before. I've seen that look a lot,
and I loved the look he had. When I showed
back up. He now had as a new tent, food, water,
(29:14):
tarps and a phone. He asked if he could put
my number in it, and I said, of course, he's good.
Now he'll be okay, and we've got a new friend.
The only thing left is to start building that relationship
we hope will one day lead to going from Home
Street Home to home sweet home. Pretty damn good day
(29:37):
in my book, and the text he sent shows how
grateful he was. Sometimes you must be open to hearing
that still small voice.
Speaker 2 (29:49):
Which you were. Obviously you heard the voice. Go to
the bridge. I love the stories that you share. I
would encourage people to go to your Instagram. I'll link
(30:09):
it in the show notes. That's the easiest way. It's
at Home Street Home underscore TN for Tennessee, and then
your website is home Street Home ten dot org. But
you're able to do things like that show up with
a tent and food and water and a phone because
(30:30):
of support that you get. So I just want people
to know a little bit about your mission at Home
Street Home, and this is directly from your website. Our
mission to identify marshall and leverage every resource available to
meet the basic needs of those trapped and marginalized within
the homeless condition, to play a pivotal role in eliminating
the scourge of homelessness in as many lives as possible,
(30:54):
to help them achieve their desire to rise above their
present situation. To inspire others to reassess their perceptions and
beliefs concerning the homeless condition and those affected by it.
To always be real and real little acronym here are
for respect, E, for encourage, A for accept, and l
for love. So always be real in our approach and
(31:18):
call to action, and to do so without qualifications, stipulations,
and or expectations, solely because it is the right thing
to do. Homestreet Home's goal to meet the needs and
fill the gaps that others aren't and to make an
attempt to never have to say no to one of
our friends in need. And then the purpose to support
and lift up those who are trapped in the grip
(31:40):
of homelessness and other vulnerable living conditions, regardless of age, race, gender, nationality,
or religious belief for affiliation. So that's just some of
what y'all are about. You're about homestreet home, your team
and your teaming, you and other formally homeless, I mean
your wife, others that come involve in here. But when
(32:01):
we were out with you on Saturday, he us to
share a Stevenson want us to share his friends you
had what was his name? Again? I thought it was
going to come to me Eddie. I thought i'd remember
that because I worked with an Eddie. But oh, Eddie
was there, and you know, you look at and you're like,
I could tell you're like a proud dad and Eddie
he's an older man, but he's like, that's Eddie right there.
He's one of my success stories. It's really cool to
(32:24):
see that rehabilitation right there before our eyes. And then
for you to see someone that was formerly homeless now
taking care of himself, got a job, like he's about
to hit the road with his job, and that's a
big deal, keeping a job so much so that now
you're being trusted to travel with the job. And now
he's out helping you help others, which has got to
(32:47):
be beautiful to see, and it was beautiful for me
to see. And I just want to encourage people to
donate if they can learn more, if they can spread
the word. If they can share this episode with others,
maybe that's what you can do. If you don't have
the resources, maybe you share it with someone that might
have the resources, or you can possibly load up some
summer type things that summer. We're approaching summer now as
(33:10):
you're listening to this, it might be winter. Because podcasting's weird.
You could be listening to this in December. But specifically,
I know needs for the summer and always chopstick, yes,
umbrellas for rain or ponchos. But what umbrellas are great
for is because that sun gets hot, Yes it does,
and to have even a small umbrella just to block
(33:30):
the sun is such a blessing. I know, baby wipes,
bars of soap. I'm just thinking of different things.
Speaker 3 (33:36):
You've told me.
Speaker 2 (33:37):
Do anything you want to throw in bottled water, granola
bars and stuff like that that don't melt.
Speaker 1 (33:42):
Yeah, something as simple as a bandana that they can
put on their head or use it to wipe the
perspiration away. It's not the big things, it's the simple things.
One of the things that I use and really pertaining
to the homeless, but it can also pertain to society
and a whole I love to say smiles can change
(34:04):
the world. Recognition can change a life being invisible, and
that's the way you feel a lot of times when
you're homeless. I can't describe that feeling, just the simple recognition.
I tell people, I said, it's not about money, it's
not about what you give them. It's about being seen
(34:29):
and in a good way, with a smile behind it,
not a look of you're disgusting, You're this, you're that
recognizing look. It's simple. A nobody sat around and you've
heard me say this at twelve, thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen,
seventeen years old and said I want to grow up
(34:50):
to be homeless. No, nobody chooses to be homeless now,
truth be known, there are some that choose to to
remain homeless. But you have to ask yourself why, and
can't get into that now, we don't have enough time.
But there are reasons having recognition for not being smart,
(35:15):
not being talented, not being anything special, just for being alive.
Because I can speak from experience, I know what it
feels like to think the world doesn't even know you exist,
and that feeling it does more damage than you can imagine.
(35:39):
So a friendly smile.
Speaker 3 (35:41):
Which is free, which is free?
Speaker 1 (35:43):
A wave and acknowledgment. Real quick story. I was standing
there on my corner selling my paper, right there by
McDonald's and a Lowe's, and this old pickup truck, rusted,
old pickup truck, didn't have a muffler on it. It
comes flying off the street around the corner, pulling into
where I was standing, and I waved at him, and
(36:04):
he goes buy and all of a sudden, he slams
on his brakes and he turns around and he pulls up.
He slams on his brake again, and I look in
and here's this guy and a wife beat her tattooed
up bald head. And I'm thinking, I hope I didn't
offend him. I hope he realizes I was just waving
and smiling. And he rows his window down and he says, hey,
(36:30):
come here. So I walk over there, and I said, yes, sir.
He said, don't ever stop smiling. I was kind of
dumbfounded there at the moment. And he said I was
having one of the worst mornings of my life, or
so I thought. And he said, I come flying around
the corner and there you are, and you're smiling, and
(36:54):
you're waving at me. And I thought to myself, here
I am feeling the way I feel, acting the way
I'm acting, and there you are with nothing and you're
smiling and you're waving at other people. He said, don't
ever stop, he said, because you have no idea the
(37:17):
influence that you can have on people. And that is
something that I've never forgotten. And I try to smile.
I make it a point if I'm standing in line
at Walmart, when I finally get up to the cashier
or Kroger wherever, I always look for the name tag
because I always want to say hello Betty, or Hello Tom,
(37:39):
how's your day going, thank you for taking care of me.
I've never had anybody look at me like with that
look of shut the h up and leave me alone.
Ninety percent of the time, at least they go, I
see a smile creep in and I hear a little
thank you. And before I did that, one simple little thing,
(38:03):
they look like they hated being where they were doing
what they were doing.
Speaker 2 (38:09):
So again, the recognition, the recognition, thank you for that encouragement,
and people want to know how they can help out
beyond what you've just suggested and they want to get
involved in Everything's linked in the show notes, the website, Instagram,
there's ways to donate. I know people can earmark what
they want to contribute towards the specific needs and the
(38:32):
different ways that y'all support the homeless community. So just
encourage people to go check out the website because it's
all there.
Speaker 1 (38:39):
Right and remember this, and I'm very proud of this.
We are an all volunteer organization. We don't have a payroll.
I don't get paid for this. My people don't get
paid for this. This is our calling, this is our passion.
It's not our job. And according to my accountant, little
over ninety four cents of every dollar that is given
(39:00):
we spend providing what our homeless friends need to survive
to move forward, and that encompasses everything from clothing and
personal hygiene to getting them reconnected with family. So far
this year, we've sent twenty six people back home to families.
Speaker 3 (39:21):
So that's like bus tickets, bus.
Speaker 1 (39:23):
Tickets, but it's also me picking up the phone and
becoming that bridge to let the healing start. Because I
understand that you can get to a point where you
can't connect anymore. You have to have that buffer. You
have to have that person that can sit there and
be proactive for both sides and build that bridge. And
(39:48):
families may need convincing that their child or their brother
or their sister, whoever it is, has changed and is
ready to do better. If that's the case, Sometimes it's
this simple as hey, what needs to be done? What
can be done?
Speaker 2 (40:05):
Not everybody has someone to even call, So what a
blessing that you can be that liaison.
Speaker 1 (40:11):
One of the things that we do that has been successful,
and this goes back to the very first gentleman that
we helped get off the streets almost ten years ago.
I have a group of people I call him my
little group of grandmas and grandpa's, mostly grandma's and I
can say this because I'm a senior citizen now, especially
(40:32):
the grandma type. They love to talk on the phone.
So whenever, like with Eddie, when Eddie moves on out
of my orbit, so to speak, he will be assigned
a grandma and grandma or grandpa's job will be to
keep in touch with Eddie a couple of calls a week,
(40:55):
a couple of texts, whatever, and keep that connection. And
then I throughout the year and I may have to
start doing it a little more because now we've gotten
a little over seven hundred people off the street in
the past ten years. I at least call each and
every one of them that I still had the numbers for,
(41:15):
and the numbers are still working once or twice a year.
There's days that I do nothing but sit there and
call and let them know. Hey, I don't care if
it's ten years ago, fifteen years ago, because we tell
them you are our friend, you are now a part
of our family, and that doesn't end just because you
got off the streets.
Speaker 3 (41:37):
I love that.
Speaker 2 (41:38):
Yeah, I didn't know the grimmall grimfall side of the ministry.
I think that's great that you've recruited people for that
and to fill that role of love and accountability.
Speaker 1 (41:48):
Because, like you said, there are some out there that
don't have that.
Speaker 2 (41:51):
They don't know, and that's great that that's another thing
that y'all are able to provide.
Speaker 3 (41:58):
It's really beautiful.
Speaker 2 (41:59):
Thank you for coming on again for the third time.
Can't wait to have you back for a fourth four
Thanks you know we say it'll be perfect.
Speaker 1 (42:08):
Can't wait.
Speaker 3 (42:09):
Thank you, Steven, Thank you
Cast up little food for yourself life.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
Oh it's pretty bad.
Speaker 3 (00:19):
Hey, it's pretty beautiful, man, beautiful for.
Speaker 1 (00:22):
That for a little more exciting, said, he can't your
kicking with full thing with Amy Brown.
Speaker 2 (00:32):
Happy Thursday, four Things, Amy here and I have a
very special episode for you today with a returning guest.
Last week we had Walker Hayes on for the third time,
and this week we have Stephen Young back for a
third time.
Speaker 3 (00:46):
Hey, Stephen.
Speaker 2 (00:47):
Hey, Stephen is the founder of Home Street Home, and
he has the most amazingly bittersweet story of redemption that
I've ever heard.
Speaker 3 (00:56):
It's a beautiful one.
Speaker 2 (00:57):
He found himself homeless about fifteen years ago, and he
was almost for five years, and then ten years ago
made a change and started a ministry serving the homeless.
And what I'm gonna do for everybody, Stephen, is I'm
gonna link our previous two episodes so people can go
back and hear more of your story because there's so
much there. I know we'll get into some of it today,
(01:19):
but there's just so much you were on back in
twenty nineteen. That was episode ninety six. I'll link it
in the show notes. And then our second chat was
twenty twenty one, that was episode two fifty six, and
then today this is episode five, one hundred and sixty three,
so time, Yeah, we'll have to have you back for.
Speaker 3 (01:37):
A round seven hundred or something.
Speaker 2 (01:39):
Again, those will be linked in the show notes, and
again you're gonna hear some of his story weaved into
today's episode. And I mentioned right at the start this
is a very special episode because Stephen is an amazing
poet and writer. And he doesn't know this yet, but
that's what I'm highlighting about you today. Stephen, your poems,
your stories, and they're going to move y'all. I'm so
(02:01):
thankful you're here. When Stephen has come on in the past,
I get emails. I just pulled a few Stephen, and
just so you know, this is one of the emails
from Nicolette back in the day, just listen to the
podcast with Stephen Young was brought to tears.
Speaker 3 (02:15):
This one is from Anne.
Speaker 2 (02:16):
I'm not reading the entire emails, but you know, Anne,
I just finished listening to your podcast with Stephen Young,
and I have to say I'm still sitting here on
my kitchen floor with tears in my eyes. Another one
from Kimberly, thank you for your podcast. Your interview with
Stephen Young was so amazing. This is so important and inspiring.
We needed that interview. I have more here, I think
(02:38):
one from someone in New Zealand that listened. She said
it's one of the episodes that has changed her life.
So Stephen, thank you for coming back on.
Speaker 1 (02:48):
Thanks for having me.
Speaker 3 (02:49):
I printed out some of your recent poems and stories
right there that These are ones that you published on
the Home Street Home Instagram and I would love for
you to read them for us. It's your writing, should
be your voice. And then of course we'll talk a
little bit after each point. Are you in, I'm in
all right.
Speaker 1 (03:06):
Well.
Speaker 2 (03:06):
The one I want to start with is called May first,
What was almost the beginning of the end. And again
we'll do four of these to fit with the theme.
Speaker 1 (03:17):
May first, fifteen years ago, what was almost the beginning
of the end. Over the years, my life crashed and
burned many many times, but this day was unlike any other.
It was the last day I would have a place
to call home for almost five years. It was a
day marked with panic, shame, fear, tears, and a sense
(03:43):
of loss I had never experienced before. And it wasn't
a material loss. Over the years, I had gone from
having everything to having nothing more than once, but this
time it was different. I felt I had lost all purpose.
I had lost my place in the world in society.
(04:05):
I no longer belonged to anyone, or any place or anywhere.
I was suddenly homeless, and I had no clue what
to do. I had less than forty dollars to my name,
and all my belongings were packed in a gym bag
and a couple of croker sacks. Where do I go?
(04:26):
What's going to happen to me? How am I going
to survive? As night fell and I sat in the dark,
the fear grew stronger. Then the tears started flowing, as
shame took a seat beside fear. I had never felt
more alone than I did at that moment. It was
(04:46):
the beginning of some of the darkest years of my life,
and I just didn't see a way out. I had
used up my bag of tricks. My past was now
my present, and my future seemed to have complete disappeared.
The fact that I get to tell you about it
today is nothing short of a miracle. If it weren't
(05:07):
for God, all those fears would have become reality. That
is why I share this, because I want you to
know there is always a way out. If you are struggling,
if you see no way out, if you are sitting
alone in the dark and wondering if the light will
ever shine again, don't give up, Never give up, because
(05:31):
what I thought was the end in reality was the beginning.
Sure at that moment, my life had gone from bad
to really bad, and I was convinced that it was
only going to get worse, that even my life being
okay had been taken off the table for good. I
(05:51):
was wrong. Did it get worse? Yes, it did a
lot worse, But in the end, worse became better than
it's ever been. Hang in there, don't give up, because
you're better than it's ever been. Is waiting for you
on the other side. Be blessed and always much love.
Speaker 2 (06:10):
I love that you're better than it's ever been is
waiting for you on the other side. And it is
just to give people some perspective of a lot worse.
I mean even that alone, being left with no other
option and forty dollars in your Kruger sacks, Like, is
there a worse moment that comes to mind? Do you
have a load that you'd be willing to share.
Speaker 1 (06:31):
I have to go back to Christmas Eve of twenty thirteen.
At the beginning of the year, I'd made a promise
to myself that I would never spend another holiday season
alone on the streets. Up to that point, had done
practically everything I could think of to try to get
off the streets. As we've talked before, it's not easy
(06:52):
and nobody can do it alone. They've got to have help.
And I was tired, and each day that and by
it seemed I was getting closer to that being the
life that I was going to live forever. And I
couldn't handle that. I didn't want to handle that, I
didn't want to deal with it. So a little bit
(07:13):
before the holiday season, I realized that the promise I
had made to myself at the beginning of year not
to spend another holiday season on the streets, the only
out I could see to keep that from happening was
to end it on my terms. And so I checked
in to Hallmark in on Trinity Lane in Nashville, Tennessee.
(07:37):
And that is done with a sense of sarcasm, because
the room was nineteen dollars. I think so that tells
you how luxurious it wasn't but it was Hotel California
for me. I was going to check in, and I
had no desire to check out. I had made the
decision that I was going to end it, and I
(07:58):
was okay with that to a degree. But I realized
that that's how far I had sunk. But for the
grace of God, I would have succeeded. People have asked me,
and we've talked about it, and well what happened? Well,
I wish I could tell you, because I went from
sitting at that little table with the pills in front
(08:19):
of me, a few letters that I had written to
a few people, not knowing if they would ever get
them or read them. I was ready. I was done hurting.
I was done going to bed at night, falling asleep,
hoping I didn't wake up the next morning. The next
thing I know, I hear a knock on the door,
and I'm startled. I'm shocked, and I'm going, who's knocking
(08:43):
at my door? Because nobody knew I was there. And
I had looked at the clock earlier that was beside
the bed, and it was nine o'clock Christmas Eve, and
I thought good a time as any well, when that
knock on the door came and it startled me. I
was sitting there for a minute, and then another knock
(09:04):
followed it, only this time there was a voice with
the knock, and it said, sir, are you staying or
are you checking out? And as I looked at the door,
I caught the clock again and it set eleven o'clock.
But it wasn't eleven o'clock Christmas Eve. It was eleven
(09:27):
o'clock Christmas Morning, and I was like, what the heck?
I cleaned my language up. I think I used something
a little more colorful back then. And I was kind
of in a state of shock, and I reached into
my pocket and I pulled out what money I had left,
and I counted it out and I said, I'm going
(09:49):
to stay another night. I'll come down and pay in
just a minute. So I did, and that was the
beginning of my journey back. I would like to to
tell you at that moment that was my come to
Jesus minute, but it wasn't. I wasn't there yet because,
as you know, knowing my past, God and I did
(10:09):
not get along for many, many years. But it was
the beginning and March of twenty fourteen, I walked off
the streets. So my lowest turned into my highest, and
I've not looked back. What I thought was me giving
up was really me letting go. And it wasn't until
(10:32):
I was ready to let go of trying to fix
things that God saw the opening and he took it.
Speaker 2 (10:40):
To fast forward you fourteen hours that you can't explain
right right where you're like, how did I get here?
Speaker 1 (10:46):
Right? And he took that opportunity. And I tell people now,
whether they're homeless or people that I counsel with and
people that I know that are down, I go, you
wanted to change, let go, let go of the past,
let go of the pain, let go of the hurt,
because until you do, there's no room for anything else.
(11:09):
And there's got to be room.
Speaker 2 (11:11):
And thankfully, y'all, you were not successful no in twenty
and thirteen, because the lives you've been able to impact
since then are countless at this point. And you celebrated
your sixty eighth birthday this year. Thanks for reminding me, yes, yes, hey,
we got to celebrate that because you know, come a
(11:31):
long way, yes, from that hotel room, which I think
is a perfect setup into another poem that you posted
that really moved me, called sixty eight years of Yesterday,
So I'd love for you to read that one next.
Speaker 1 (11:45):
Sixty eight years of Yesterday. There was a time when
the odds of me reaching this point weren't very good.
Yet here I am, and in the quiet early morning
hours before the sun puts a spotlight on this day,
I can't help but look back and try to put
my pass in perspective and ponder what may lay I had.
I was so self absorbed that I never considered what
(12:07):
it would feel like to reach this stage of my life.
I never thought I would, and I wasn't sure I
wanted to. Most people spend decades preparing for their later years.
I spent that time living only for the moment, with
total disregard for the future. Now I find myself hoping
I'm around for a while longer. Did life go the
(12:31):
way I had hoped or planned? I can't say, because
I wasn't much for doing either. I think that luxury
disappeared from my life when I was twelve. But as
I sit here and try to describe it, I'm transported
through the years on a whirlwind recollection that seems surreal
at best and unreal at worst. Regrets. Oh yeah, Still,
(12:55):
I'm blessed because I have lived long enough to change
my story. It wasn't until recently that I questioned or
cared if my existence would have counted for something. Would
I pass on without having had a positive impact in
this world or leave having made a difference, even if
just in a very small way. I wasted so many years.
(13:19):
But I thank God for never giving up on me
and for allowing me time to hopefully make a difference
one that matters. Do I miss those days? Not at all.
I'm still here and in a better place than I've
ever been. I've made peace with my past and found
strength in the forgiveness, mercy, and grace God has shown
(13:41):
and continues to show. I appreciate each day in a
way I never could before, and I feel I have
a purpose beyond myself. No, it's not always great, but
for the most part, it's damn good, better than it's
ever been, and I cannot help but believe the best
(14:02):
is yet to come. I pray that with whatever time
I have left, I can in a good way touch others'
lives the way so many have touched mine that through
my experience and example, others can come to know that
it's never too late and once again be blessed and
(14:23):
as always much love.
Speaker 2 (14:26):
So you mentioned in this one did life go the
way I'd hoped or planned? I can't say, because I
wasn't much for doing either. I think that luxury disappeared
from my life when I was twelve, and that's part
of your backstory that people can learn if they go
listen to other episodes that you've been on. You also
have a book from Chains to Change, One Man's Journey
(14:48):
from God Hater to God Follower. I'll link that in
the show notes. You've definitely had many, many reasons to
turn from God, and I think that or just even humanity, right,
it's not even just in your faith. It was someone
in the church that let you down, but then also
family too when you tried to speak up and you
(15:10):
weren't believed. And you know, I posted something on my
Instagram earlier this week of you know, if you could
tell yourself three words, your eighteen year old self, just
three words, because I had asked last week that's one
of the questions I asked Walker and he said I
would tell my eighteen year old self run to Jesus right,
those are his three words. And I posted that and
(15:31):
I had people share their three words, and I have
loved reading the three words so much, going through and
seeing what people are saying, and one of the comments
that stood out to me, and you know, I replied
to them that I'm so sorry that that was their experience,
but they had a similar experience to you with the church.
And I just know that there's other people listening that
(15:52):
have been betrayed by the faith system their family, and
I hope that they hear your heart and know that
it can get better and there can be healing within yourself,
because that's going to be something.
Speaker 3 (16:06):
I know you're earlier to.
Speaker 2 (16:08):
Hear someone say let go, and of course you've lived
it and you're like, you just you have to let
go and make space for the healing. And I just
know there may be one person that's like, Okay, easy
for you to say.
Speaker 1 (16:21):
True, easy to say, real, real, hard to do. And
I don't ever want to sell someone suffering short, because
I had so many people in my life sell my
suffering short and they wanted to play the blame game
and put all the blame on me.
Speaker 3 (16:38):
Meanwhile, you were a child.
Speaker 1 (16:40):
Yes I was, but even as an adult I had
my fair share of blame. There were times that, in
those still quiet moments, I knew that I had become
my own worst enemy. But I was also real good
at rationalizing why. But the thing is this, when we
(17:03):
stop letting others define who we are, who we're going
to be, and take the moment to decide for ourselves
the answer to those questions. And this may upset some
people when I say this, I had to come to
terms with the man in the mirror because then the
(17:26):
man in the mirror over the years did almost, if
not the same amount, and if I really looked hard,
maybe a little more damage than any anybody else did
to me. And yes, I was extremely blessed on that
(17:46):
Christmas Eve that God didn't allow me to do what
I had set out to do. He intervened, and like
I said at the time, I would love to say
that was my come to Jesus moment. The real change
was this when it all happened, I didn't know why
it happened, I didn't know how it happened, but for
(18:08):
the first time in my life, there was a peace
inside of me, in my heart that I never felt before,
and I didn't know how, I didn't know when, I
didn't know why, but I knew it was going to
be okay. And cry, cuse, scream, pray, do whatever you
(18:32):
have to do because you need to and you have
the right to. But don't ever think it's too late.
Don't ever give up, because you are somebody. You deserve
to be happy. You can touch other people's lives, because
(18:56):
for every one of us that have gone through whatever
it is we're going through, there's somebody out there whose
path is going to collide with ours that can relate,
that is looking for someone that can relate to them.
And that's been the true joy of my life for
(19:18):
the last ten years, is opening that door so others
can share their pain. They're hurt, they're suffering, their insecurities,
et cetera, et cetera, et.
Speaker 2 (19:32):
Cetera, which the opening up and the sharing and the
connection and that with others can help stop the cycle. Yes, which,
thank you for your honesty in saying, yeah, I was
hurt in a lot of ways, but also because I
was hurt in this way, I continued to hurt and
pass that hurt along. Yes, you know, until you started
(19:55):
to find the peace, make the peace, find the healing,
open up for that. So thank you for saying that.
I know that we've all been there, and there's that saying.
Hurt people, hurt people, and even when we're in a
place of healing, we are still very capable of hurting people.
Speaker 3 (20:08):
That is for sure. I know that myself.
Speaker 2 (20:12):
But yeah, you've created such a safe space for a
group of people that they don't have many people that
they can talk to, and you have been consistent some
of them. I know.
Speaker 3 (20:25):
You have to show up and you have to work hard.
Speaker 2 (20:27):
You have to continue to show them like Hi, I'm here,
I'm here, I'm here.
Speaker 1 (20:33):
And they don't make it easy.
Speaker 3 (20:35):
Right, you know.
Speaker 2 (20:36):
So, whoever that is in your life for you, your
commitment is to the homeless community because you've been there
and that is your gift. You know how to connect
with them like a lot of other people don't. And
of course there's other people out there in organizations that
have the gift of connection with the homeless community, but
you're one that's doing it here in Nashville, and I've
witnessed it and it's a beautiful thing. But just encouraging
(20:57):
people to think of like, where can you show up
for people? What's your story that can connect because we
all have a story. I feel like that helps give
more purpose and meaning to things that we've been through
and what it's made possible, and so then it doesn't
feel wasted.
Speaker 1 (21:13):
Right. Something that I like to say a lot is
you're hurting can help somebody heal. I was there. We've
all been there where you just felt that you were
totally alone, that what you were going through nobody else
had ever gone through before, nobody could understand what you
were going through. And if you can ever get to
(21:35):
the point where you can share that hurting. And it's
not easy to do, even for me now, because sometimes
I have to in sharing that hurt, I feel that
hurt again. But what I've realized is when God puts
me in the position to do that, the person that
(21:57):
I'm sharing with starts to heal because what happens in
that moment is we find out that I'm not alone.
There is somebody that understands there is somebody that knows
where I'm coming from. And that is the first step
in the healing process for a lot of people is
(22:19):
to know that they're no longer alone.
Speaker 2 (22:21):
Do you know what three words you would say to
your eighteen year old self? Do you know what three
words you would say to your eighteen year old self?
Speaker 1 (22:40):
You will survive and until that Christmas Eve. I don't
think I would have ever used those three words in
any reference. But looking back now, and you've heard me
say this, I wouldn't want anybody to have to go
through what I went through, but I would go through
(23:02):
it all over again, knowing where I was going to
end up. That's easy to say looking back, But the
reason I say that is I want the people out
there who need that encouragement to realize possibility is real,
(23:22):
happiness is real, peace is real.
Speaker 2 (23:28):
And there are seasons of life, which I think is
the perfect transition into the third point I'd like for
you to read, which is called when the petals die.
Speaker 1 (23:40):
This is a recent one. When the petals die, flowers grow,
bud and bloom, and eventually the petals start to die
and follow away. But is that the end of the story.
Of course not, As we all know, the flower is
just going through a season, and we can look forward
(24:02):
to it coming back in blooming and again because its
roots are strong and it will be fed and nurtured
along the way to ensure its return. We are more
like flowers than you might think. We too grow, bud
and bloom, and we too go through seasons, the ones
where life is good, full of color and beauty, and
(24:25):
every day seems to have at least one joyful experience.
Then there are the moments when life gets us down,
when we suffer a failure or experience a loss, the
times we lose sight of things, veer off course and
make a wrong turn, when the fact that we are
imperfect becomes all too clear, and it appears as though
(24:48):
everything we do is wrong. Mistakes seem to define nearly
every decision, and the light has grown so dim that
darkness becomes our constant companion. Yes, we all have those
seasons when our petals die, but remember, all is never
lost unless we choose not to bloom again. If we
(25:12):
allow ourselves to be nurtured by faith, if we feed
upon the wisdom of our beliefs and follow our inner compass,
our roots will grow strong. Our ability to bounce back
to rise from the ashes will be a testament to
our resilience and strength, And like the flower, we will
(25:32):
bloom again standing tall and full of life. A testament
to the power of faith and self belief, because like
the flower and all of God's creations, we are each
beautifully and wonderfully made.
Speaker 2 (25:49):
So that line the light has grown so dim that
darkness becomes our constant companion. That makes you think of
the fourth and final thing I've got for you to read,
which isn't a poem, but it's a post that you
put up. The picture was a screenshot of a message
you got from a homeless man that you would just helped.
(26:11):
So I'll set up what he said in the text
and the screen shot, and then you can read what
you wrote, which I'm calling what you wrote that still
Small Voice, because again it's not a poem, it's it's
a post that you put up, and I just thought
it was a great representation of looking out for people,
being consistent, showing up gratitude, you know, even if it's
(26:36):
somewhere like you know, you're always looking, You're always on
the prop Like when I was out with you on Saturday,
it's like you're always like, Hey, who's that guy over there?
Speaker 3 (26:43):
What's that guy walking?
Speaker 2 (26:44):
Like we'd be driving along and you would see clearly
a homeless person on a bike. You're like, oh, wait,
I know him, but why is he riding his bike
that way? His tent is that way? And then you know,
you stopped, roll down the window talk to him. And
then when I talked to you about it later, you're like, yeah,
well where he was got flooded and now he's riding
his bike and you're on the prow. You're looking for
(27:04):
ways and against that you're consistent, And I feel like
for this particular man, it was a light in that darkness.
For him, this exchange with you, darkness is likely his
constant companion. But then y'all's interaction was a little bit
of light, you know. So here's what he wrote, Stephen.
(27:25):
I just want you to know how much I appreciate
everything that you have done for me. After I set
up the new tent and move my stuff over to it,
I just sat inside and cried.
Speaker 3 (27:37):
I'm so grateful for what you have done. God bless you.
Speaker 2 (27:41):
And that was again the picture, and then you can
read the caption that you wrote for it.
Speaker 1 (27:46):
I had been under the bridge a dozen times and
never found anyone, so it'd been a while since I
stopped and checked. I drove by it at least two
or three times a week, but like I said, I
never found anyone. I wasn't even going to cross it.
I was going to turn right before I got to it,
but something told me to check again, and there he was.
(28:08):
He was startled when I called out, and seemed a
little leary, so I told him who I was and
who I was with, leading him to lower his defenses,
and once we started talking, it wasn't long before I
found out how he ended up there. He had a
camp not far from the bridge. It was just him,
no one else, and the bad weather over the past
(28:30):
few weeks had taken its toll on its tent. He
did what he could to keep it together, but mother
nature eventually won out. He didn't have a phone, so
he couldn't call anyone, but as he said, I don't
know who I would have called. I got no one,
So he salvaged what he could and headed for the bridge.
(28:51):
He had been there several days, sleeping on the rocks
with nothing but a sleeping bag. That's when I told
him to sit tight and that I would return shortly.
He had that look in his eyes that said, yeah, right,
I've heard that before. I've seen that look a lot,
and I loved the look he had. When I showed
back up. He now had as a new tent, food, water,
(29:14):
tarps and a phone. He asked if he could put
my number in it, and I said, of course, he's good.
Now he'll be okay, and we've got a new friend.
The only thing left is to start building that relationship
we hope will one day lead to going from Home
Street Home to home sweet home. Pretty damn good day
(29:37):
in my book, and the text he sent shows how
grateful he was. Sometimes you must be open to hearing
that still small voice.
Speaker 2 (29:49):
Which you were. Obviously you heard the voice. Go to
the bridge. I love the stories that you share. I
would encourage people to go to your Instagram. I'll link
(30:09):
it in the show notes. That's the easiest way. It's
at Home Street Home underscore TN for Tennessee, and then
your website is home Street Home ten dot org. But
you're able to do things like that show up with
a tent and food and water and a phone because
(30:30):
of support that you get. So I just want people
to know a little bit about your mission at Home
Street Home, and this is directly from your website. Our
mission to identify marshall and leverage every resource available to
meet the basic needs of those trapped and marginalized within
the homeless condition, to play a pivotal role in eliminating
the scourge of homelessness in as many lives as possible,
(30:54):
to help them achieve their desire to rise above their
present situation. To inspire others to reassess their perceptions and
beliefs concerning the homeless condition and those affected by it.
To always be real and real little acronym here are
for respect, E, for encourage, A for accept, and l
for love. So always be real in our approach and
(31:18):
call to action, and to do so without qualifications, stipulations,
and or expectations, solely because it is the right thing
to do. Homestreet Home's goal to meet the needs and
fill the gaps that others aren't and to make an
attempt to never have to say no to one of
our friends in need. And then the purpose to support
and lift up those who are trapped in the grip
(31:40):
of homelessness and other vulnerable living conditions, regardless of age, race, gender, nationality,
or religious belief for affiliation. So that's just some of
what y'all are about. You're about homestreet home, your team
and your teaming, you and other formally homeless, I mean
your wife, others that come involve in here. But when
(32:01):
we were out with you on Saturday, he us to
share a Stevenson want us to share his friends you
had what was his name? Again? I thought it was
going to come to me Eddie. I thought i'd remember
that because I worked with an Eddie. But oh, Eddie
was there, and you know, you look at and you're like,
I could tell you're like a proud dad and Eddie
he's an older man, but he's like, that's Eddie right there.
He's one of my success stories. It's really cool to
(32:24):
see that rehabilitation right there before our eyes. And then
for you to see someone that was formerly homeless now
taking care of himself, got a job, like he's about
to hit the road with his job, and that's a
big deal, keeping a job so much so that now
you're being trusted to travel with the job. And now
he's out helping you help others, which has got to
(32:47):
be beautiful to see, and it was beautiful for me
to see. And I just want to encourage people to
donate if they can learn more, if they can spread
the word. If they can share this episode with others,
maybe that's what you can do. If you don't have
the resources, maybe you share it with someone that might
have the resources, or you can possibly load up some
summer type things that summer. We're approaching summer now as
(33:10):
you're listening to this, it might be winter. Because podcasting's weird.
You could be listening to this in December. But specifically,
I know needs for the summer and always chopstick, yes,
umbrellas for rain or ponchos. But what umbrellas are great
for is because that sun gets hot, Yes it does,
and to have even a small umbrella just to block
(33:30):
the sun is such a blessing. I know, baby wipes,
bars of soap. I'm just thinking of different things.
Speaker 3 (33:36):
You've told me.
Speaker 2 (33:37):
Do anything you want to throw in bottled water, granola
bars and stuff like that that don't melt.
Speaker 1 (33:42):
Yeah, something as simple as a bandana that they can
put on their head or use it to wipe the
perspiration away. It's not the big things, it's the simple things.
One of the things that I use and really pertaining
to the homeless, but it can also pertain to society
and a whole I love to say smiles can change
(34:04):
the world. Recognition can change a life being invisible, and
that's the way you feel a lot of times when
you're homeless. I can't describe that feeling, just the simple recognition.
I tell people, I said, it's not about money, it's
not about what you give them. It's about being seen
(34:29):
and in a good way, with a smile behind it,
not a look of you're disgusting, You're this, you're that
recognizing look. It's simple. A nobody sat around and you've
heard me say this at twelve, thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen,
seventeen years old and said I want to grow up
(34:50):
to be homeless. No, nobody chooses to be homeless now,
truth be known, there are some that choose to to
remain homeless. But you have to ask yourself why, and
can't get into that now, we don't have enough time.
But there are reasons having recognition for not being smart,
(35:15):
not being talented, not being anything special, just for being alive.
Because I can speak from experience, I know what it
feels like to think the world doesn't even know you exist,
and that feeling it does more damage than you can imagine.
(35:39):
So a friendly smile.
Speaker 3 (35:41):
Which is free, which is free?
Speaker 1 (35:43):
A wave and acknowledgment. Real quick story. I was standing
there on my corner selling my paper, right there by
McDonald's and a Lowe's, and this old pickup truck, rusted,
old pickup truck, didn't have a muffler on it. It
comes flying off the street around the corner, pulling into
where I was standing, and I waved at him, and
(36:04):
he goes buy and all of a sudden, he slams
on his brakes and he turns around and he pulls up.
He slams on his brake again, and I look in
and here's this guy and a wife beat her tattooed
up bald head. And I'm thinking, I hope I didn't
offend him. I hope he realizes I was just waving
and smiling. And he rows his window down and he says, hey,
(36:30):
come here. So I walk over there, and I said, yes, sir.
He said, don't ever stop smiling. I was kind of
dumbfounded there at the moment. And he said I was
having one of the worst mornings of my life, or
so I thought. And he said, I come flying around
the corner and there you are, and you're smiling, and
(36:54):
you're waving at me. And I thought to myself, here
I am feeling the way I feel, acting the way
I'm acting, and there you are with nothing and you're
smiling and you're waving at other people. He said, don't
ever stop, he said, because you have no idea the
(37:17):
influence that you can have on people. And that is
something that I've never forgotten. And I try to smile.
I make it a point if I'm standing in line
at Walmart, when I finally get up to the cashier
or Kroger wherever, I always look for the name tag
because I always want to say hello Betty, or Hello Tom,
(37:39):
how's your day going, thank you for taking care of me.
I've never had anybody look at me like with that
look of shut the h up and leave me alone.
Ninety percent of the time, at least they go, I
see a smile creep in and I hear a little
thank you. And before I did that, one simple little thing,
(38:03):
they look like they hated being where they were doing
what they were doing.
Speaker 2 (38:09):
So again, the recognition, the recognition, thank you for that encouragement,
and people want to know how they can help out
beyond what you've just suggested and they want to get
involved in Everything's linked in the show notes, the website, Instagram,
there's ways to donate. I know people can earmark what
they want to contribute towards the specific needs and the
(38:32):
different ways that y'all support the homeless community. So just
encourage people to go check out the website because it's
all there.
Speaker 1 (38:39):
Right and remember this, and I'm very proud of this.
We are an all volunteer organization. We don't have a payroll.
I don't get paid for this. My people don't get
paid for this. This is our calling, this is our passion.
It's not our job. And according to my accountant, little
over ninety four cents of every dollar that is given
(39:00):
we spend providing what our homeless friends need to survive
to move forward, and that encompasses everything from clothing and
personal hygiene to getting them reconnected with family. So far
this year, we've sent twenty six people back home to families.
Speaker 3 (39:21):
So that's like bus tickets, bus.
Speaker 1 (39:23):
Tickets, but it's also me picking up the phone and
becoming that bridge to let the healing start. Because I
understand that you can get to a point where you
can't connect anymore. You have to have that buffer. You
have to have that person that can sit there and
be proactive for both sides and build that bridge. And
(39:48):
families may need convincing that their child or their brother
or their sister, whoever it is, has changed and is
ready to do better. If that's the case, Sometimes it's
this simple as hey, what needs to be done? What
can be done?
Speaker 2 (40:05):
Not everybody has someone to even call, So what a
blessing that you can be that liaison.
Speaker 1 (40:11):
One of the things that we do that has been successful,
and this goes back to the very first gentleman that
we helped get off the streets almost ten years ago.
I have a group of people I call him my
little group of grandmas and grandpa's, mostly grandma's and I
can say this because I'm a senior citizen now, especially
(40:32):
the grandma type. They love to talk on the phone.
So whenever, like with Eddie, when Eddie moves on out
of my orbit, so to speak, he will be assigned
a grandma and grandma or grandpa's job will be to
keep in touch with Eddie a couple of calls a week,
(40:55):
a couple of texts, whatever, and keep that connection. And
then I throughout the year and I may have to
start doing it a little more because now we've gotten
a little over seven hundred people off the street in
the past ten years. I at least call each and
every one of them that I still had the numbers for,
(41:15):
and the numbers are still working once or twice a year.
There's days that I do nothing but sit there and
call and let them know. Hey, I don't care if
it's ten years ago, fifteen years ago, because we tell
them you are our friend, you are now a part
of our family, and that doesn't end just because you
got off the streets.
Speaker 3 (41:37):
I love that.
Speaker 2 (41:38):
Yeah, I didn't know the grimmall grimfall side of the ministry.
I think that's great that you've recruited people for that
and to fill that role of love and accountability.
Speaker 1 (41:48):
Because, like you said, there are some out there that
don't have that.
Speaker 2 (41:51):
They don't know, and that's great that that's another thing
that y'all are able to provide.
Speaker 3 (41:58):
It's really beautiful.
Speaker 2 (41:59):
Thank you for coming on again for the third time.
Can't wait to have you back for a fourth four
Thanks you know we say it'll be perfect.
Speaker 1 (42:08):
Can't wait.
Speaker 3 (42:09):
Thank you, Steven, Thank you
Feeling Things with Amy & Kat News
Host
Amy Brown
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