“We chase misprinted lies, we face the path of time, and yet I fight, and yet I fight this battle all alone, no one to cry to, no place to call home” lyrics from song “Nutshell” by Alice in Chains

Today, we had the privilege of serving 29 people.

• We ran into some of our regular friends, but our friends (Kathy/James) were not at our usual spot.  We kidded with them last week if we didn’t see them today, they must have followed through with their plan and went into treatment.  We can only hope and pray.

• We met with our friends (Sarah, Kay, Jay, James) trying to keep dry under the canopy of a building.  We gave them our packet of $10 bill/$10 Dunkin Donuts card/prayer card, along with socks, underwear, wet wipes.  A lot of them had unhealed cuts, some with infections, along with swollen hands and feet.  We started talking about their friend (Bosch).  I told them I went to see him last Sunday in the hospital; he’s in the ICU in rough shape.  He recognized who I was by saying my name.  I held his hand, and he started crying.  I told him his friend (Rachel) told me he was here.  He kept trying to tell me something, but he couldn’t get the words out.  The nurse told me he had fallen again and told me he is in here every couple of weeks.  The expression on her face told the story.  With the frequent trips to the hospital, our friends can become a burden to the hospital staff and first responders, only to leave the hospital and do the same thing over again.  Insanity is described as doing the same things over and over again expecting a different result.  Anyone suffering from addiction knows this firsthand.  The power of choice is taken away once the mind-altering substance is taken.  It’s a vicious cycle that repeats itself until a divine intervention takes place or sometimes death. As of this writing our friend (Bosch) is still in the ICU.

• We ran into our friends (Kathy/Shane) who were staying in a woman’s apartment but had to leave.  (Shane) was asking for a tent which I told him I will have one for him next week.  We have talked over and over again about taking a leap of faith and going into treatment.  The standard answer is, “we are going to”.  I kidded with them saying “or you can summer on the streets of Brockton”.  We can only hope and pray something changes.

• On our last stop we ran into some new and old friends.  They were very appreciative of receiving our packet of $10 bill/$10 Dunkin Donuts card/prayer card.  We gave them socks, tee shirts, underwear, snacks, Gatorade and water.  They were very uplifting to talk with even in their present living situations.

Thank you to all who support this important mission of Christ, OSM.

God Bless,

Claire and Shaun Teed and Tito

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“Blessed are you who hunger now, for you shall be filled, blessed are you who weep now for you shall laugh”. Luke 6:24

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