Anakana Schofield

A two night sudden temperature dip that I noticed firstly because an extreme weather warning was issued for the homeless and it caught my eye. -2 last night and it will settle around -1 tonight.

Yesterday I noticed a man I have seen over a dozen years on various streets. The first years I saw him he was always on his bicycle and seemed purposeful. He clearly had some mental health struggles but he looked like he had shelter and seemed quite functional. In recent years he has plunged and is now clearly sleeping rough, he looks fragile and bashed about by life. Every time I see him it’s such a reminder of what happens to the vulnerable when mental health support, affordable, subsidized or sheltered housing and pro-active medical care do not kick in. (a troika rather than 4 pillars) Deeply saddening and alarming.  He’s not the only one, I’ve noticed many others.  I cannot fathom how they endure the cold nights they must face. My mind turns to them as the temperature falls or the icy wind hits.