# 14 We are grateful for our home!

This was Cannon's project, he actually wanted to do it last Friday but we had a huge snowstorm and I was worried about driving in it.  Cannon really wanted to take sack lunches to the homeless.  Gigi and I made lunches while the rest of the kiddos were at school.  We picked the kids up from school and headed downtown.  We weren't sure where to go but knew that there are usually several people that stand near the Catholic Charities building by The Gateway, so that is where we went.  We were sadly surprised by how many people we found in front of the building.  I would say maybe 70 to 100 people.  I had imagined us all getting out of the car and handing out lunches and wishing everyone a happy thanksgiving, happy, happy, joy.  The fact is when we drove up it was kind of scary.  I asked Cannon to help me get the meals out, the rest of the kids stayed in the car and just stared out the window and the large mob that surrounded our now measly looking pile of lunches.  19 lunches, 2 sleeping bags and one bag of doggie treats were gone in about 10 seconds.  Several people asked if we had anything else we could give.  One young man in particular who could not have been older than 17 or 18 followed me to the back of the car when I was putting my box away and pleaded for something, anything.  His eyes looked so sad.  All I could find was a box of tissues.  Now I'm kicking myself for not giving him the $5 bill I had in my pocket, I didn't even remember it until it was too late.  I could tell Cannon was a bit shaken.  I think we were both thinking it would feel a little more rewarding; instead we both left thinking we should have done more.  When we were driving away he said "Mom, next time we do this we need to think this through a little better.  We need to put the lunches in a cardboard box that we can leave there so we don't have to see the faces of the people we didn't help."