Being Homeless In Billings

Over the weekend, I experienced something that made me incredibly sad.

My wife and I had stopped at Mr. Thrifty Foods in downtown Billings for a couple of things. We decided as we parked that she would run in quickly and grab what we needed while I waited in the truck.

We parked next to a dumpster, she jumped out and as I looked up I noticed a very drunk homeless man digging through the garbage. He could barley stand as he reached in and grabbed what he could.

At first, I didn't believe what I was seeing but soon came to realize that what I was seeing was a very sad truth.

He was looking for food.

It didn't take him long to find some discarded lunch that someone once had. From my angle it looked to be molded and dirty as I would expect in a dumpster. I couldn't even quite tell what it was.

He managed to scrape up a broken fork and made a plate out of a piece of cardboard that was there. In about 5 minutes, he had what he could find and stumbled to the sidewalk area. He plopped down and began partaking of his feast.

I had no way to help this man and it made me feel bad. He didn't ask for help and seemed he just wanted to be left alone in what he felt he had to do to survive.

This was a major reminder to me from God that I don't have it as bad as some in this world. It is a harsh reality of what some deal with in this country and I personally don't think it is going to get better anytime soon.

I understand that part of his circumstances are choice based but part is fate as well.

The bottom line is that it bothers me seeing this.

If you are struggling, there is help. Please search for a way to make things better for yourself as most of us do.