Have you ever wondered how people get to where they are and what happened along the way? I do everyday at Siloam Mission.

In my life, many things have contributed to who I am today.

Years ago, I ran up and down the alleys of Edmonton, picking up garbage from more than 5,000 homes every week. Most days, the job would take over 10 hours — no matter the weather conditions. Over time, I learned to run within my oxygen level and could run the whole day.

Many young athletes would help out on holiday weeks when the five-day garbage cycle had to be packed into four.

‘Exhausted by mid-day’

These young guys would start in a flurry and be exhausted by mid-day.

Watching these pros struggle, I realized knowing your limits can often get you further.

I learned to understand my limitations and how to work within them.

Some life experiences increase our capacity. Others take it away.

As I get older, my memory is becoming an increasing problem.

In my 30s, I could remember a significant conversation six months later, almost verbatim. Today, note-taking has become a necessary exercise for me to keep things straight.

People who end up on the streets have often experienced significant life experiences that take away capacity as well.

This week, many of us at Siloam Mission worked very hard to help a woman called Penny (not her real name).

One of our staff happens to know Penny from many years ago when they both worked in a large downtown Winnipeg department store.

Penny was stationed at the cosmetics counter as a sales associate, helping customers pick out cosmetic products that made them look more attractive. She was real good at it, too.

Penny was also quite the attractive lady herself. Not only did she assist others in looking stunning, she was also highly concerned with her own appearance.

But life experiences ended up limiting Penny’s capacities. Faced with mental illness, Penny lost everything she had.

Today, she relies on our services every day to survive.

Last week, Penny was crawling with lice and bedbugs at an apoplectic level. She was about to lose access to our Hannah’s Place Emergency Shelter because of the risk she posed to others.

Of course, her mental illness wasn’t helping her deal with the issue properly. One day she was willing to get treatment, the next morning she refused.

Eventually, Penny walked into our Saul Sair Health Centre and got the medical attention she needed.

She has since returned to our shelter, but there was a good chance this life experience could have put her completely on the streets.

It’s easy to think that if those without a home would just decide they didn’t want to be homeless, life would work out for them.

But sometimes life is much more complicated than that.

Penny, who once helped others look beautiful, is now a shell of her former self, avoided by most people that pass her on the street.

Her dreams are gone.

Along her life journey, I’m sure mental health illness was not something she prepared for. Or imagined.

— Floyd Perras is executive director of Siloam Mission.

SUN Article