Helping others helps us all

Photo by Ev on Unsplash

Every year I run various writing offers to help raise money for St Mungo’s, a UK homeless charity. In the past I’ve run lotteries in the Retreat West community with lots of courses and mentoring sessions as prizes. Due to my sister-in-law being critically ill in hospital, and other commitments to people on courses with me already, my time and headspace won’t allow this kind of fund raiser this year.

So instead I am donating 50% of all new annual or founding memberships to The Mindful Writer between now and 31st October to St Mungo’s. They do such important work.

My home town of Reading, UK, has always had rough sleepers for as long as I can remember. But now there are hundreds. I’ve been friends with one of them, Richard, since I first stopped to chat with him almost 9 years ago. At that point he’d been sleeping rough for just a few months. He’d been his mum’s carer for two years and when she died the council took her flat back just two weeks later and he had to leave. He had no job as he’d been full time caring for his mum and no savings, nowhere to go.

Whenever I am in Reading I look out for him and buy him hot food and a hot drink, give him a bit of cash. But I don’t have much to give and so many people need help. Especially as the winter approaches.

I received an email from St Mungo’s yesterday saying the UK Government has just announced that homelessness is at an all time high.

That’s why I’m hoping if you enjoy what I’m doing here and would like to get more closely involved, you’ll sign up to join my growing community of mindful writers and help me help Richard and lots more people like him.

One of the most important things I’ve come to understand about this human experience is that we’re all in this together. We’re all connected. Helping others helps us all.

With love,

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