Bent hope : a street journal

Bent hope is more triumphant than sad but don't try to read it without a box of Kleenex handy. Don't skip straight into the main text without reading the foreword and prologue either. This is a book where every word counts. It may not seem that way at the very beginning, but you'll want to get the full effect.

There are lots of street-worker journals on the market these days and I've read many of them. They are full of stories of survival amidst broken hearts and dreams and frequently feature reminders that, broken as they are, street folk are people too. We are admonished to love them for many reasons - because they have had a rough life, because the system has failed them, because we might just as easily be in their shoes, because love can change a life, because Jesus was poor, because "loving the unlovely" brings blessings, because they've endured great loss, because they're fellow human beings,... but in the end, it is always "us" loving "them." This is the first book that asserts, from the start, that there is no "us" and "them."

"Either we are all beggars, hookers and junkies, or none of us are. There is no in-between...Every day I play the role of a beggar. I look to the charity of others, seemingly wanting something for nothing to feed my ego and the overwhelming need to belong. Every day I play the role of a hooker. I try to sell the words, ideas and actions I think might make me desirable to others, often against my own better judgment, in order to get the emotional validation I need to survive. And every day I play the role of a junkie. I feed my addictions, supplying relentless cravings with products, entertainment, daydreams and relationships that are bad for me." (pg 15) Can you deny it?

Tim Huff respects and learns from the people he meets on the street. He is impressed by the strength and dignity of people who have been dealt unimaginable blows. Pity is not a theme in his writing, although sorrow, anger, and indignation appear. So do humility, awe, and a deep appreciation for relationships without pretense. One by one we are introduced to his friends as Tim shares with us what so impresses him with each person.

I couldn't read this book in one sitting. Each chapter is dedicated to one person's story and I found, especially at the beginning, I could only "meet" one person at a time. It took some time to process that person's story before I went on to the next. Some made me cry, some made me very angry, many made me wish I could meet that person face to face for a big hug. Every story helped chip away at that invisible wall between "us" and "them." I hope it does the same for you.

Bent hope : a street journal by Tim Huff. Published in 2008 by Castle Quay Books. ISBN: 978-1-894860-36-9.