YESTERDAY: ORIGINS; PLANTING A SEED
d’Arcy Witherspoon - February 9, 2021
This is d'Arcy typing; I am currently 21 years old and I am from Ipswich Queensland and I am the founder of Down to Earth. Ever since I was 14 I have fed the homeless or those in need with my school St Edmund's College. St Edmund's College is a lot of the reason why I have taken the path of helping people it was just a normal thing for us boys to do. I just loved the feeling of helping people even at that age, I loved making other people happy and it was something that we did on a weekly basis. One program we did was called footprints in the park which is where we just did a barbecue at the local park, Queens Park. For me you know how everyone has there hobby or there sport; whether it was playing rugby, football, gaming, studying, playing an instrument or debating something that eddies offered all of, well I chose the community service path. It was just my thing to do wasn't too many of us but just so rewarding for me personally and never looked back in that path and always wanted to do more and always wanted to help more. So I ended up continuing this footprints in the program with Rosie's until the end of grade 12.
Few years passed I started my bachelor of business degree at uni, got picked up by Woolies as a manager and really lost myself I felt. It wasn't any ones fault not even myself its not like I did anything wrong or anyone else around me did wrong life just went on. You guys can probably relate I bet. See for me I was just living up to the normal social expectations of a kid just finishing high school. Pretty much when I finished high school I learnt that if you work hard in anywhere you get really far; so I was busy as working full time and studying full time at one point. It felt like i had a lot going for me at a young age I had money coming in for me and I had opportunities that were arising for me in the near future which once again involved money and I think that is where my problem began is that it all began with me seeing too much value in money. I just thought that everything comes down to money and having money, I thought that the more money you have the happier you are. everything I would do would be because it would be financially better for me staying at woolies was easy money and it worked well with my gaming and uni degree that will once again turn into more money, money just caught a hold of me I guess. I do not think I am alone here either cause we are all chasing that dollar at the end of the day , that's just how the cookie crumbles, it all comes down to how much you value that dollar though. Nowadays my value in things is so much better and it took a certain situation for me to get there, it wasn't something that happens overnight.
So my mind was on the money but my heart was on something else. I got my first girlfriend and that was was probably the time of my life. Felt like I had it all, had my own place, had a good job and a promising future. So you could say I started to see value in something else (my girlfriend). she was the first thing I thought of and the last thing I thought of everyday so I was definitely in-love with her, she just meant the world to me. Things just weren't going to work and I think we both knew that, so I needed to get my mind off things in a peaceful way and start a new project so I bought a van which was used for my escape from reality and society. used to go out in the bush or the beach and camp in it, I just wanted to be alone. So yeah we ended up breaking up and I just spiralled out of control, I became the complete opposite person than what I once was. I just lost control and just bottled everything up and never talked to the people around me that knew loved me so bloody much (which is the worst part). I ended up attempting suicide in late 2019 and I hurt so many people around me, I put so much pain on people that didn't deserve a bit of it, especially my ex girlfriend I feel so bad for putting her through all that I just didn't think she knew how much she meant to me but at that point it felt like I lost everything already and had nothing more to lose apart from my life. I just didn't have a purpose but I had my van i spent so many nights out in that thing.
One of my first nights out in the van I went out to Caloundra and spent the day there; went fishing and hit the waves. Then it became dark and I was in the van all alone with my family pack of steaks and salad beside a random park so council don't get me. I just felt so alone and just had one of those be there moments where I looked back at my life and really saw there was no purpose without money and how that I have lost so much of me from when I finished high school. One ability I lost was my bubbly, friendly personality that would talk to anyone and try and make their day and I lost the power of giving; such a wholesome power and feeling. Anyways I approached two strangers and asked if they would have dinner with me; I loved it and they loved it. Then I thought to myself that night; I wonder how many others out there feel the way I just did 30 mins ago; alone, hungry and cold and to which can feel the way I do right now. So that is when I got the idea of feeding the homeless; even though I was helping them, they were actually helping me as well without even realising it. I got so much life and so much value and purpose from feeding them as I just got so much out of giving and loving others. Instead of all my love going to my girlfriend it went to the homeless across Brisbane and Ipswich. It was no loss for me either I used the same stuff from my camper van set up and I had to eat obviously, I wanted to eat with someone and make someone else happy while doing it. Making someone else happy made me happy :)
And that's how the seed was planted, that is how it all began
love d'Arcy- Down 2 Earth
