Output.iii

Overnight Shelter

One of the most significant things that's been going on in the time my blog dried up has been the church's work with the roughsleepers' night shelter project. When this first came to us and we agreed to take it on i thought it would, firstly, be brilliant, and secondly, really be something worth blogging about with easy access to lots of stuff to say.

In hindsight i think i was right on both counts, the issue is i wasn't aware of the extent to which the relationships built up with the people using the service would make blogging about it (and them) feel like some sort of exploitation. It's a tricky thing because i think the story of the impact had on the church by running the shelter is a vital one to tell, but it's that very impact itself (i.e. the change to the nature of the community in terms of the individuals who comprise it) which - if that community is to be genuine - kind of prohibits a 'selling of the story'. I suppose the forums and means used to tell (or show) the(se) story(s) need to be very carefully thought about, as should what is sought to be achieved by their telling.