Invisible in Plain View
Welcome to my random musings about the world, on a weekly-to-occasional basis.
Where we are: We’re in Kyoto, Japan, which is beautiful and jammed with tourists, and I don’t even mind because even the train stations have magic washlet toilets. I’m never leaving.
Invisible in Plain View
Lee says I shouldn’t even try to write about this, because it’s a complex problem; not even the experts fully understand it. I recognize that; I know there’s zero chance I can make any sense of it, given that I know only what I can see when I walk down the street.
So there you have my giant caveat: I have no idea why this is such a problem here.
The this I’m referring to is homelessness.
It’s a little jarring, actually, being in what seems to be a very wealthy country, and seeing (what appear to be) so many homeless people. I don’t know—maybe they aren’t actually homeless? But they’re definitely panhandling, and they appear to be sleeping rough. I don’t know who they are, or why they’re on the streets.
Lee and I are used to seeing poverty—really brutal, grinding poverty. But somehow (and maybe this is a reflection of my blinders, more than anything else) it’s more surprising when it’s a pile of cardboard and blankets on the steps of a grocery store. In the Philippines, I saw a man bathing a child in a cinder block tub next to the road, and while I noticed the scene, I wasn’t terribly shocked by it. But it seemed to be his home, that tumble-down corrugated shack, whereas the homeless people here seem to live on the streets.
I’m not implying that there’s any kind of qualitative difference in the unjust nature of poverty in one country versus another. Perhaps I’m just trying to examine my own response to it. I’m far more shocked here in Australia than I was in the Philippines. Perhaps I’m too inured to the conditions that so much of the world’s population grapple with on a daily basis. Perhaps I’m too removed from whatever turmoil and crises have impacted developed countries since I became a nomad. Maybe I just don’t really know very much about Australia (very likely).
If you are Australian and reading this, please don’t be offended! I am aware that my own country has a terrible homelessness problem. I’ve loved our time in Australia, and I fully intend to come back and see more of this remarkable land.
I just didn’t expect it, that’s all.
Take care,
Lisa
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