Guilt

Like a thief in the night, a soup kitchen has taken up residence on the corner of the highway and the entrance to the business district of our little tourist town. This has created a whole host of emotions in me. The first is Anger. I am upset that as a non profit they were not required to get a business permit or any kind of approval prior to making this move. They set up shop with no thought to how they would affect the other business in the area, the hotels, the restaurants, or the National Park tourist office they now sit next to. The second is guilt, good old fashioned, catholic guilt, at the fact that I need to support feeding the hungry and helping the needy. There should have been a discussion. There should have been some thought put into this process. Now that they are there it will be a difficult situation to correct. Anyone who opposes them is cold hearted. How can you turn out the needy. We will be accused of covering up the problem, trying to hide them away. Bull, there are so many things wrong with the scenario I can not even list them all. Let's put the needy on public display, let's expose them to honks and harassment and the elements. Let's feed them in an old gas station, a site that has been contaminated by years of petroleum based products. We are called to serve our fellow man, This calls us to be creative and compassionate in our solution. They deserve a better solution than a shabby soup line, in a run down structure, no one else wants.