One of the big problems I have noticed for new FVMs is asserting authority. Many of the guests and even the daily volunteers take a while to get used to new people and often assume we are just visitors. I was helping to coordinate during the morning shift today (the coordinator is basically the manager of the entire operation, and it is a different person every meal so that no one person is really in charge of the Inn. The division of power here is beautiful-all responsibilities are rotated and shared among everyone who works here), and when I was asked to help by the regular morning volunteers who hand out the takeout breakfast, I couldn't gather the courage to say "I can if you need me, although that's not really my job," instead I just silently joined in the flurry of stuffing paper bags with pastries. Often, when guests come around looking for the coordinator after dinner and see one of us, they will ask to see someone from the team instead. I am not always good at taking charge of situations and I get discouraged when someone questions my authority, but I suppose that will just be one more thing for me to work on and grow out of while I am here. I always consider it a minor victory when I am able to respond to a request without having to consult someone else, and these victories are luckily getting more and more frequent!



Yesterday a policeman was in our neighborhood to speak to us about the increasing number of people who have been sleeping on the street, and what we think should be done about it. On the one hand, this is a reasonably safe place to sleep outside, although if people keep bedding down out here, safety will become a greater issue. There really aren't a lot of other places to go, and shelters fill up quickly. So, the policeman asked if we were more likely to be sympathetic to them because of the work we are doing, but Fr. Michael explained to him that the problem is not the sleeping, it is the drugs that they sell and do, and the lack of public restrooms (the loading dock on the warehouse* next door is a favored area for relieving oneself). But where else are they supposed to go? If the policemen shoo them away from our sidewalk, won't they just end up on another person's sidewalk doing the same things? Every day is a new question lacking a good answer.


*=did I mention we live next door to a tropical fish and exotic pet warehouse? Just another example of the ridiculousness of our life here in Philly.