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A billboard on a highway, showing my book, oh, how I would love that. To bring awareness to a subject we don’t like to talk about. The Unhoused! I was one of them. I am THEM.
I will always belong to this part of our society that is often judged harshly and so unfairly, even though we have moved on and live now with my husband and our dogs in a beautiful home.
“They are all addicts, or mentally unstable!”
“They are all lazy. If you want to work, you will find work!”
I don’t even blame people for thinking that because I did too. So many in this country live in cars or stay with family members or friends. Some live in tents, which we don’t like to see, because they make our streets and our parks look so ugly. We don’t want to see the ugliness! We don’t want to be confronted with the truth.
I understand, because I didn’t want to be confronted with it either. Perhaps that’s why I wrote our story down. That’s why I published my book “Losing it All”. That’s why it’s not a free Kindle book: to get the word out. To bring attention not to myself, but to our circumstances. What happened to us can happen to most of us. Millions are just a couple of paychecks away from being houseless or homeless. Medical bills, the loss of a partner, job loss, and health struggles. We don’t want to hear about it, and I understand. I didn’t want to hear about it either.
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As a young girl, I was confronted with THEM daily. The school I went to in Bavaria, the South of Germany, was part of a convent, and the Salesian Sisters, who took care of us, were merciless. They made us feed the homeless and the houseless. Every evening, at the same time when the 300 girls and the 50 sisters were served dinner, the houseless and homeless were served dinner as well.
In the entry area of our boarding school, tables were set up, and the girls who had misbehaved served bread and soup to the hungry men and women who showed up. A cruel punishment for misbehaving? Or a smart way to open our hearts and our minds? We didn’t like to serve THEM food; THESE people often smelled bad, looked funny, and were poor. Some of them touched us, grabbed our hands to thank us, and we didn’t know how to react. At a young age, I was shown a part of society that I didn’t want to belong to.
The nuns were smart; they made us serve the less fortunate at an age when we were often so arrogant. The rich girls and the farm girls like me, all of us, sooner or later ended up serving.
Most of us are only one or two paychecks away from LOSING IT ALL. I have lived it, and that’s why I would put my book up on the billboard. Is it a good read? Yes, I think it because so far the reviews have shown me that it helps people to identify themselves with me…with THEM.
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Which would grab more attention – a billboard or signs on all the city buses? Talk about great advertising. I remember hearing about someone who actually rented one for a week or so for a proposal. I have no idea how costly it would be, but it would be so cool to see your own book larger than life. A wonderful thought!
My book reading has been a slow go the last few years, though I’m re-establishing a reading routine. Definitely adding yours to this year’s list. Thank you for sharing and best wishes!
It’s nice to be on your list. I added yours to my list. Best wishes always, that’s what’s normal between friends. 🙂
😊🙏🏻
Nicely done
Thank you, Derrick.
You followed your conscience and spoke up . . . I hope people read, think and take notice!
That’s, of course, wishful thinking. If a few will read it, that would be great, because I think that’s ultimately what every writer aims for. A few readers and everything above is an extra bonus. If you are back at the address that you shared with me. I can send you a book IF you would like to take a look but you don’t have to. I know you are busy like a bee.
dearHeart – I am a very, very, very honest person . . . because of circumstances rather short of the proverbial bob at the moment but I could not take this for free . . . just not in my makeup . . . am settling certain matters over the next week – if all works out I’ll order and pay, as you should be paid . . . but thanks a million for the offer !!!
I think my billboard already exists, but it would say: Driving distracted, tired or buzzed is the same as driving drunk. Don’t do it.
In honor of my dad.
Yes, it does exist but we can’t say it often enough. “Don’t drink and drive” and “Don’t text and drive” and most importantly “Eyes on the Road”.
I love to see pictures of your school, it looks delightful – but looks can be very deceiving, as we know!
The school still exists. It’s now a Montessori school in Germany, Dietramszell. The boarding school closed in 1989, if I am not totally mistaken. The number of nuns in the convent had dwindled down from 50 to 2 or 3. One of the nuns, who watched over us in 8th grade as our group nun became Mother Superior. The remaining nuns have now moved to the motherhouse in Italy to enjoy their retirement there. The boarding school was one of the best things that ever happened to me. Very strict rules given to us by teachers and nuns, but 300 girls were busy bending these rules on a daily basis. 🙂 I have nothing but good memories.
Our daughter attended boarding school because I was being constantly posted around the world, and it was the only way to provide her with an uninterrupted education.
I attended boarding school because the next school closed to our village had more than one grade in a class room. A little bit with “Little House in the Prairie” but with snow. 😂 In the winter, we could be snowed in for weeks. My grandma wanted to give me the best education and she succeeded. Also, I think she realized that having a young child around was a bit much. She was 69 when I started living with her. She did the right thing. How she managed to have me attend such an elite school, well, she took this secret with her to her grave.
What a wonderful start she gave you!
Thanks for sharing your insights on houselessness and poverty, Bridget. I believe your book can inspire a positive change in the attitudes of readers. Your book sure would look good on a billboard! 🙂
I thought so too and had to laugh. “If you dream, dream big.”