As I came up upon 7th street and could see the building in site, I started asking myself why I was doing this again… A large case of anxiety came over me. Now I’m right in front of the door as I see the metal detector just on the opposite side of the door… That’s a good sign, right?
As I walked into the Austin Resource Center for the Homeless (ARCH), my anxiety slowly fizzled out.
I knew there were a large number of homeless people in the Austin area, but I had no idea how large that number really was until I saw the homeless shelter for my own eyes.
People were crowded outside the door just waiting for a chance to get inside from the heat.
As I made my way toward the front desk, I took a glance around the room and noticed that most people were just sitting around, waiting for something. I’m not quite sure what they might be waiting on, perhaps food because the food hall is right across the street, and it was near lunch-time.
Little to no conversation was really taking place. A few words here and there about the heat, sporting events coming up and old family stories, most, as you can imagine, are not the most pleasant of stories. In the back corner I could see beds stacked up to the ceiling. Although there wasn’t much space on the ground floor, it seemed like that’s where all the bed-mats get put during the night.
In the crowd of people I noticed an old African-American man wearing a beautiful St. Louis Cardinals hat. I went up to him and complimented him on his good-looking hat and asked him if he was a fan. He told me he was originally from St. Louis and had made his way down to Texas about 25 years ago with his brother.
In my opinion, I believe many homeless people make there way to Austin because the citizens of Austin are viewed as being very giving people, and for a person who is making ends meet from other peoples generosity, Austin seems to be a good place to flock to.
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