S is for Street Sense; Establishing place and perspective

During my junior year at DePauw, I developed the wonderful habit of reading the newspaper every day.  Whether it was on an app on my phone, or reading the hardcopy on the table in Alpha Chi's dining room, catching up with current events both national and international became a very important part of my education.

Street Sense!

Being in D.C. this habit has progressed.  Besides reading online education news articles and department news briefs, I have found a different type of news than I'm used to: street sense.  A 16-page bi-weekly street newspaper, Street Sense was founded in 2003 with the mission of raising awareness about homelessness and poverty in D.C.  It also creates economic opportunity for individuals who are currently homeless or have been homeless before.

While most people quickly walk past and avoid making eye contact with Street Sense vendors, I've found that taking the time to wish the vendor a good morning, or to simply say hello is worth just as much as buying a paper.  This is especially true for the gentleman named Larry, who stands at the corner of 19th and K Street every morning.  But he doesn't just sell newspapers.  I can always hear Larry wishing everyone a "Happy Monday," or "It's a beautiful day," long before I get to his corner.  Larry has personally taken the time to wish me a good morning every single time I have went to work.  Larry has single-handedly made every single day of my time in D.C. better.

Larry Gardner

Larry gave me
his autograph :)

After weeks of saying hello, smiling, and walking on towards my building, I stopped to buy a paper from Larry.  After weeks and weeks of telling me about the great stories and information in street sense, and me politely refusing to buy, Larry was more than happy to open the paper to direct me to the poem that he had written for that week's edition (you can check out another one of his poems here).  I was more than surprised.  Street sense is a very different type of news source, but one that many of us should learn to pay attention to. At DePauw, I have learned the importance of personal experience and how amazing each and every individuals' stories are; Street Sense is all that in writing and more.

Reading Larry's poetry gave me what I needed to really see D.C. as something other than just a place to work and make connections.  Learning about the people and the place you're staying, working, interning, etc. is vital for making the most of your experience, and truly understanding the world we live in.  So if you're ever in D.C., check out Street Sense. This newspaper will give you a new perspective.