Volleyball Run

Hi, I'm Addie and I'm one of the student leaders for Lesley Delivers, and I'm going to share with you my experience with Lesley Delivers this evening...

Tonight we were joined by the women's volleyball team for our sandwich run! We were really excited to be able to share Lesley Delivers with some new faces. The 9 of us split into two groups and at first we had very different trips. My group headed past Au Bon Pain, but we didn't see a single person. I am always so very torn in situations like this- I want to share the experience of Lesley Delivers with new people, and that definitely involves meeting some of the people we usually see; however, I can't help but hope that if I didn't see them tonight, maybe it's because they had a bed to sleep in somewhere.

While we weren't seeing anyone, we were having some great conversations about some of the innate inequalities and unfair aspects of our lives, and especially life in Cambridge. That's when I felt my phone vibrating in my pocket. Like a good Lesley Delivers participant (and especially student leader) I was not going to look at it, but something told me to just take a glance. It was Jillian, one of the co-presidents, who was leading the other group. While we don't usually use our phones, this was important because the other group had run into so many people that they were already out of sandwiches, and wanted us to bring any extras that we had.

We headed back to Harvard Square armed with plenty of leftover sandwiches. When we got to the Tannery there were literally 15 people at the bottom of the stairs. Some of them were quite gracious and took sandwiches eagerly, but others were asking for blankets and some other things that we obviously didn't have. As always these situations are difficult for me, I want to take off my own coat and give it to them, or run home and get a blanket, or at the very least had them a $20 bill. But my many experiences with Lesley Delivers have taught me the value of what we are doing- handing out sandwiches. It's not everything, but it's enough that even if I can't give these people everything they ask for, everything they need, or even everything they deserve, I still walk away feeling fulfilled. Well, as fulfilled as possible when there are still people living on the streets.

Anyway, those are my thoughts after tonight's run. I really can't thank the volleyball team enough for their sensitivity and enthusiasm. They asked tons of great questions and I hope I really do see the faces of the people who said they would be back on future trips!

Can't wait for next Tuesday!