Haight Words Read online

  as compared to other places Ive been

  I won’t go anywhere but Haight Street.

  This is home.

  (The no tresspassing signs don’t look like no tresspassing signs. They should be red w/big letters.

  If work is available for cash pay, my email is__________)

  S|moked

  A|

  R|ighteous

  S|pliff

  SARS∙SARS∙SARS∙SARS∙SARS∙SARS∙SARS∙SARS∙SARS∙SARS∙SARS

  LENA N.

  HAIGHT ST.

  IVE BEEN COMING HERE FOR YEARS TO SCORE.

  THE PEOPLE ARE REALLY DOWN TO EARTH.

  NOW THAT I LIVE IN SF

  I WOULD RATHER LIVE IN THE HAIGHT THAN ANYWHERE ELSE,

  AND THE WEED IS OFF THE HOOK.

  ANYBODY LOOKIN FOR THE BEST STORES,

  THE BEST DRUGS

  PEOPLE AND THE FRIENDLIEST ATMOSPHERE COME TO

  HAIGHT ST SF. CA.

  LOVE ALWAYS

  BCAWS1

  BRANDON C.

  I think Haight street can usually be a fun place with always plenty to do.

  Also I would say it’s pretty safe most the time.

  One big reason I like it here is because of the good weed they got here.

  And if some ones looking to shop this is a good place.

  This is not my favorite spot in the USA

  but it is 1 of my favorite.

  RYAN Z.

  The people on Haight Street fall into many different classes and types.

  There are the tourists, the local residents, shopworkers,

  and people that commute from other parts of the city.

  There are also the homeless people, these include the Hippies (a dying breed),

  the punk rockers, drug dealers and addicts, hobos and alcoholics.

  There is a lot of talent on Haight Street.

  There are all kinds of juggelers, singers, painters, poets, musicians, and acrobats.

  The crowds walking the sidewalks of the Haight dress very colorfully

  and look very smart in their stylish fashions.

  The people get along—we don’t harm each other—as different as we are,

  we are all brothers and sisters here.

  We have to remind each other of that. “How are you doing, brother.”

  The police are busy on the streets.

  A lot of people that sell drugs or marijuana get caught and go to jail.

  They are labeled “bad” by the government, and made to suffer by the government.

  The people that don’t sell drugs or marijuana don’t make very much money.

  A lot of them will sit on the street with a sign that says, “Spare change for . . .

  (whatever reason).”

  This is referred to as “flying a sign.”

  People that fly signs are trying to get money that they need to survive in a

  legal and generally harmless way

  —whereas they could be selling crack, providing alcohol to minors,

  or straight up robbing people.

  “Spare Change for Marijuana” is the sign that I fly,

  people come around and give me food and get me high.

  I like to see them laugh, I love to see them smile,.

  Friends will stop by and visit me for a while.

  RODGER G.

  Temptation, frustration, misconception,

  overwhelming urges hinder my old soul into this young mind.

  Street like no other

  The Haight confuses all into themselves.

  ALEJANDRO O.

  THE BEST DAMM EXPERINCE I HAVE EVER HAD

  IS WHEN I FIRST GOT HERE

  AND MET ALL THE LOVELY KIDS PARENTS

  AND A COUPLE OF KINDA NICE COPS

  AND THE HELLA CHORNIC

  I HAVE SMOKED

  LOVE WOODY

  MICHAEL L.

  I think living on the street is . . .

  maybe to be looked at as an experience.

  Because so many people live out here and seem to get by,

  so why can’t I try it out.

  I’ve been out here for 3 months

  and Ive learned more about the streets than I’ve known before.

  I think I’ve gained more of a “street smarts” from being on the streets,

  and it kinda roughed me out.

  WILLIAM R. N.

  Bells, bannanas, beads, pipes, posters, incense, blacklights

  spare a mug? (bud . . . roach? . . . grunion?) please!

  spare a penny, nickel, dime, quarter, half . . .

  what the fuck spare a buck?

  Just another day down here on Gods Green Acres . . .

  Piles of Smiles, for it beguiles them to think we can smile all the while (in spite of . . .).

  Keep the negative (boo-hoo-ain’t-it-fucking-awfull crap).

  Accent the positive (nice thoughts, “kind” actions), allow ourselves to be happy

  and get the most we can from this life (here and now).

  keep on smiling and . . .

  Keep on Trucken

  Hey now Yee ha & Love You

  AG

  “a poet (I know it)”

  At the age of 13 old

  I have hit the mosst cold life.

  My mom, dad, 3 sis & 4 bro died

  and i was (and am) a cold hart man

  LAMAR M.

  Death was dancing off the walls

  children screaming in the halls

  hell was in the air

  I felt my mind starting to fail

  Everthing I thought

  and everthing I thought

  is starting to disappear

  what is this thing

  is it real

  or am I even here.

  ADAM B.

  Here’s a thought,

  One of the things that stands out in my mind the most

  about living on Haight street is the sense of family.

  Everyone looks out for each other

  through the somewhat brutal rainy season,

  to taking care of each other

  through Haight St. fair day, birthday parties & funerals as well.

  Nowhere else, can you find this kind of comraderie.

  JULIA M.

  Having been adopted by very liberal parents at seven,

  and living in San Francisco at the time,

  Haight was a hippie heaven for me.

  At seven I wanted to be a hippie when I grew up.

  Dreadlocks, peace signs, and tie-dyed shirts was going to be my life.

  I loved walking on Haight and visiting shops.

  Taking a total opposite direction in life, I joined the military.

  I just got back from the war and being in the Navy.

  Being on Haight again, makes me realize

  that attainment of almighty hippieness

  is a lot harder than 7 yr olds comprehend.

  MICHAEL V-W

  My name is Jason.

  I am from Norfolk, Virginia.

  Approximately three months ago I decided to light out for the west coast—San Francisco.

  A destination I have long dreamed of reaching but had until

  recently been afraid to attempt.

  The cross-country, sea to sea journey took about six days in my old Honda

  which had almost 200k miles on the odometer.

  Unbelievably the ol ghetto rat made it all the way to the Haight,

  a neighborhood I had read so much about

  and which was/is a central part of an ongoing movement of

  art, music, novelty and wonder.

  My experience in the haight over the past several mont
hs has been

  pretty far out to say the least.

  I have met some wonderful, odd, eccentric, creepy, inventive and amazing folks.

  Many of the kids I meet are much like myself,

  here in search of something and not quite sure what.

  We seem united in a struggle.

  At times I feel lost and alone, but there always appears a rainbow

  when things seem so gray and hopeless.

  Times when the beauty of the light of music comes shining through the sails of humans we meet along the way, if we can just hang on for one more day.

  Peace,

  JASON S.

  I’ve only been here sense Feb but I love it

  I’m a drummer who plays on hippie every day.

  Sometimes the first in an last out.

  I sleep on the streets but the streets dont sleep on me.

  I’ve lost or had stolen my drum, s/bag everything

  I love it here!

  And expect to die here.

  There are many beautiful people here, but

  also there are some who are hateful.

  “All in all:” the people, park, music, life,

  inspire me every morning.

  JUEL J.

  EPILOGUE

  What I learned

  I have always been open to people of all backgrounds and stations in life, possibly due to growing up in a military family. I am what my mother would call “a people person.” For whatever reason, I have felt a connection with people living on the streets. Throughout my life, I have made a point to acknowledge street people. Some I came to know on my walking routes while living in San Diego, Oakland, and San Francisco. Some I have welcomed into my home. Not all have been strangers. There was a time when I learned my own grandmother had found herself waiting in the very food lines at St. Anthony’s in San Francisco where she had once volunteered as a server for those who had fallen on hard times. It was a heartbreaking realization, but I know she had her reasons, and they were not rooted in mental illness or substance abuse.

  What I have learned—moreover, what I have confirmed and wish to underscore here—is that not all people living on the streets are lazy, mentally ill, free-loading drug addicts or alcoholics as many would like us to believe. There are a multitude of reasons for people to deviate from what society considers normal living: being displaced by disasters such as the Northern California fires; being employed yet unable to find affordable housing or that which accepts animals; inadequate or ineffective social services (particularly for veterans); misadventures; escaping abusive environments; discrimination based on color, gender, disability, sexual orientation; being pushed out by corporate greed, or gentrification. Then, there are the unimaginable, surreal events like the onset of the Coronavirus or COVID-19 pandemic, which forced the world to open its eyes to how the unforeseen can catapult the average person into a “new normal” of joblessness, homelessness, and despair.

  What I hope you, the reader, learned

  It is my hope that, after taking in all this book has to offer, you have learned to dismiss stereotypes or assumptions and instead open your heart to new perspectives as well as new possibilities for all with whom we share our neighborhoods, cities, and planet.

  Any one of us are but one heartbeat away from being homeless at any given moment. If we can have appreciation for that concept, we can have appreciation for each other. Not one of us is unaffected by another, no matter the distance, which means there is always something we can do to show we care. Accepting this truth for oneself is a sign of not only self-respect but mutual respect.

  What can we (society) do?

  I admit this is a daunting question, which tends to propel a lot of people into a state of helplessness, hopelessness, or just plain apathy. This may also offer some relief from responsibility because the question bears far more weight than is conceivable to carry alone, but that is a deceptive notion. There is always something one can do to demonstrate caring and compassion.

  I do not presume to have all the answers. However, I do have ideas, simple ideas that the average person can consider:

  Acknowledge your fellow human being without judgment about how they look, act, speak, or where they originated.

  Reach into your heart for a smile, a wave, or a nod.

  Buy an extra cup of coffee. A small act of kindness will go far. You can build from there.

  Give your time, if only for an hour here and there, to volunteer at a shelter or other service organization.

  Donate money to your local ministry, nonprofit, or social enterprise that will direct funds responsibly to support those in need.

  Cull your closets of extra clothes, shoes, socks, linens, camping gear. Contact a veterans’ group to pick up your donations.

  Donate a bag of groceries.

  Help prepare food or cook at a local soup kitchen—at different times of the year, not just during the holidays.

  Advocate in your community to support the goal of ending homelessness.

  Be creative. Start your own program to provide compassion and voice to the silenced.

  Is there an answer or solution?

  Yes. It is entirely possible for communities to ensure the basic needs of their residents are met. It’s been done. There are models such as that developed by the founders of Glide Memorial in San Francisco, the venerable Rev. Cecil Williams and wife/poet laureate, Janice Mirikitani. Their monumental efforts and determination to provide “dignified housing” for the poor and marginalized started with the Cecil Williams Glide Community House (CW House) in 1999. According to their book, Beyond the Possible,

  Most of the residents would be recovering addicts, homeless people with multiple diagnoses including mental illness, and low-income families with children. To help them make the transition from the streets to apartment life, the building would include support services and personnel such as social workers, counselors, support groups, legal advocates, and health-care practitioners. This building would be subsidized, affordable housing in which residents would contribute a percentage of whatever income they had.1

  In addition, “CW House became a model of supportive services for low-income residents, and the dream for affordable and dignified housing grew.”2

  Any effort to replicate such a successful endeavor would have to include a philosophy akin to “the Glide brand: ‘A radically inclusive, just and loving community mobilized to alleviate suffering and break the cycles of poverty and marginalization.’”3 Additionally, Glide’s core values of diversity, Spirit, love, justice, and acceptance cannot be overlooked.

  Lastly, we cannot afford to wait for another pandemic or catastrophic event to hit our doorsteps. Please consider impressing upon your local governments the need to research and address the attributors of homelessness, such as the stigmatic manner in which addiction and mental illness is viewed and treated in our society; a failing healthcare system, especially for our veterans; corporate greed forcing our artists and artisans out of our neighborhoods; the gentrification of our communities of color; and inadequate response measures for those affected by cataclysmic events. There is no one solution or approach to resolving homelessness. There are many. You need only to find a way that is manageable for you, within your power.

  Dignity, humanity, respect

  How can people living on the streets earn dignity, humanity, respect? Do they want to earn it?

  Do they have to earn it?

  I say it is not a matter of earning.

  It’s a matter of acknowledgment, love, and acceptance.

  See, listen, and support one another.

  Together, we can reach the side of hope, whether in the Haight or where you live.

  * * *

  1 Williams, Cecil. Mirikitani, Janice. BEYOND THE POSSIBLE: 50 Years of Creating Radical Change at a Community Called Glide (San Francisco
: Harper Collins, 2013). P 288.

  2 Ibid, P 291.

  3 Ibid, P 286.

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  I would like to thank my dear brother, Swami Dharmananda of Sivananda Ashram Yoga Farm, who helped me to conceive this book; friend and scholar, Anita Chang, for her critical eye in reviewing my work from a social justice perspective; my loving partner, Raimo Hirvonen, for his constant support and encouragement; my mentor, friend, and curandero, Charles “Doc” Garcia, who shares my compassion and dedication to caring for the underserved using healing plant medicines; my father, retired USAF Lt. Colonel Conwell, for important edits; and my dear friends and family.

  BIOGRAPHY: ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Lori Pino is a holistic life coach, healing artist, and social justice advocate from the San Francisco Bay Area, whose passion and mission is to empower others to rise up so they can live a life of purpose. Haight Words is her first book wherein she attempts to bring light to the depth of humanity existing before our eyes, compelling us to draw on our own compassion and help bring voice to the silenced. She has also coauthored an article about a day-labor service-learning program she cofounded, published in the Journal of Chiropractic Education in 2020. And she is a contributing author of Collective Wisdom: Powerful Stories and Practical Advice for Achieving Success, published by Inward Journey Press in 2009.