"T-Swap"

This past Saturday was another milestone in Stand up 4 Hopes growth. We have always been trying to get more people involved, more volunteering and more than this; a personal touch from others that opens up themselves to the streets and the people who live on them. I was unsure as to how this could be achieved, and "T-Swap" was born. The original idea of a "T-Swap" was probably around since t-shirts were made and friendships needed to be birthed, and I read about it while watching some inspirational ways of working with people who are not as well of as we are, who need respect shown to them in an honest and not plastic way. We took the original way I had read about, which was of people making friends by swapping shirts and people swapping shirts with charity organisation's shirts, to a different view that would suit the friendships needed on the streets. We made it based on this precept "Touching hearts, one shirt at a time."

Tina, our lady behind the scene, is someone who allows me more time on the streets while she does the kind of admin that I rarely, if ever am excited to do and is something she does incredibly. And rightly so, I will use her words to describe what "T-Swap" was.

"In John we are told about how Jesus washes the disciples feet. It is an act of humility and love. We are called to emulate Jesus' actions and his character. T-swap is a way to act this out."

And this is what T-Swap was. We went into Melville, 15 or so people from within the church clothed with a favourite shirt of their own, ready to meet with the homeless guys and swap their new and loved shirt for the other person's street, that obviously was a lot dirtier and being honest, a lot smellier too! Contrary to the title of the day, this was not about swapping shirts but about being able to be real with people you may drive past every day but never meet. About being wary of the outside and about being open to the possibilities. It was an amazing time for myself just to be able to see others who have heard about what is happening on the streets, and seeing them becoming a part of the bigger story. Seeing the interaction, the stepping out of the comfort zones that took place; this is what loving, respecting and believing in a vision really is all about.