In Honor of Billy
“And one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill,’ and yet you do not supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that?”
For over a week, I’ve been haunted by the horrific news that an unhoused person died when a large tree fell on his tent, killing him in the Thursday, June 11th storm. The encampment is just past the MLK Jr. Parkway, before Douglas Ave. I pass by the encampment when I ride my bike on the trail along that route. Local 5 News interviewed another unhoused friend who was camped out nearby, who said, “‘I looked up and saw trees down. I said, we’ll go check on our friends in the back, and I looked over and seen the tree down behind Billy’s tent, my buddy,’ neighbor Darnell Johnson said.” “‘We was like family,’ Johnson said. ‘He loved to help people out. He’s a good person. He’d go out of his way to help you out.’”
Billy’s death should be a moment to reflect on Billy, Darnell Johnson, and all persons experiencing homelessness. It is too easy to look away, pass judgment, or otherwise diminish the unhoused. We do not know their stories or what is in each heart. We should grieve Billy’s death and celebrate what was good and decent about him. Billy may not have had the financial resources to pay rent or a mortgage, but he had value. Billy is described as a “buddy,” “like family,” a “good person,” and someone who’d “go out of his way to help you out.” How many people with mansions have no one to speak well of them?
Imagine the daily grind and continual fears of those, like Billy, who experience homelessness. Am I safe when anyone can force their way into my tent? What if I get sick? Where is my next meal coming from? What happens if the city chases us away from the encampment by the river, and I become separated from friends I trust? Did Billy worry about a tree falling on him in a storm? Yet, for the myriad challenges each day brought, friends still had good things to say about him.
Before we forget about Billy, or judge him for not having adequate financial resources, ask yourself, what if I had been born with fewer opportunities and for whatever reason, had no other option but to live in a tent, in a wooded area, where a rotted tree could fall on you at any given moment? Would you remain optimistic, friendly, and charitable, as Billy's friend described him? I want to think so, but I am not sure. Pray for those who go to sleep in the encampments on windy, stormy nights and think about whether they will be the next Billy, crushed under a tree. Pray for ways to provide hope and housing for those struggling with homelessness. What charitable and political avenues can we take to be God’s hands in an unjust world? Ask God for the faith to act and the wisdom to do so effectively.
