Friday after work I decided to go to Greenwich Village here in New York City. Our church that is starting June 15 is located there on 115 MacDougal St. in The Players Theatre (www.theawakeningnyc.com). I love walking around Greenwich Village because you really never know what you may see. Early Friday evening the weather was still nice and the sun was still shining so I decided to go for a walk in Washington Square Park. I should have known there was a full moon or something because one of the first things that happened was I decided to take some pictures of families getting ice cream from an ice cream truck. Now, this wasn't a place of business, this was an ice cream truck parked on a public street. Long story short I ended up getting attacked by said ice cream truck driver. He was either doing something illegal or he was on the witness protection program. So I decided due to the fact I didn't want to get arrested for beating up an elderly ice cream truck driver and seeing that I am starting a church in the neighborhood, I figured it was time to walk on. I went and enjoyed some great music in the park and then noticed someone holding a sign right in the middle of the park. Now, this in itself is not unusual at all since often here in New York City people stand around holding signs. There was something different because I kept noticing a lot of people just looking in his direction with a bewildered look on their face and then all of the sudden I see three people walk towards him and give him a hug. I noticed they didn't give him any money so then I assumed these people were just tourists not understanding sign and entertainment protocol in the public areas of the city (those of you here in NYC know what I mean, take a pic, then give a buck?) As I walked closer I noticed this guy was holding a sign that said "FREE HUGS." Now in many places in the United States or even the rest of the world this might not be strange, but in New York City. Free hugs? Are you kidding me? After just 6 months of living here I have already began to put up a few barriers myself and assume the worst about many people like 'this'. I decided to watch for a few minutes and look for the trick or hidden cameras. I couldn't find anything that was negative about this 'experiment' in the park. What I noticed was sincerity and smiles on the faces of the hugger and the huggee. As I watched this I started realizing two things. One, that people are really lonely in New York City and that is the main reason we are here starting a church. The second was this guy must be weird even though he is inspiring me to write a new blog. I decided to go talk to this 'free hugger' pervert and see what his real deal was.

Dennis: So, I was watching you give free hugs. I have a blog and was hoping to ask you a few questions.
Hugger: (laughs) Yeah sure.
Dennis: So, what is your name, age and all that good stuff?
Hugger: My names is Victor Caneva and I am 28 living in Queens. I am a teacher and teach theater to children.
Dennis: Hello Victor, I am Dennis. So why are you giving free hugs here in Washington Square?
Victor: A few years ago there was this guy, Juan Mann, that moved to Australia and he was lonely and didn't know anyone. He started giving free hugs to people like this and the popularity grew so much that the band Sick Puppies even featured it in a video. So during Christmas I started noticing all these people Christmas shopping and spending all this money but few of them looked happy. So about 5 months ago I decided to go to Union Square and give free hugs to the lonely people. I started doing it 2 to 3 times a week here and mainly Union Square. I had one lady whose husband had passed away said she had not been hugged in almost two years. I gave her a hug and she broke down crying.
Dennis: So why do you think so many people here in NYC are lonely?
Victor: It is a place where people choose to be isolated. To survive here people put up walls. Two or three months ago a professional photographer asked if he could shoot me doing this. He choose to take them from behind me to see their reaction. There was this real tough guy that walked up kind of grumbling and then I gave him a hug. He then looked at me grumbled and walked away. Later I saw the picture and while I was hugging him he had this huge smile on his face. That is the purpose of free hugs.
Dennis: I've noticed a lot of people just give you weird looks.
Victor: I don't blame the weird looks. To survive here you have to put up some walls. But in a city of 8 million, they are lonely.

A couple years ago when Hunter, my son, passed away I had never felt more alone in all my life. Yeah, I had friends and family but there was a void that couldn't seem to be filled. Even though most people don't have to experience that type of tragedy, the tragedy that most, if not all, will encounter is being lonely. It is often a feeling that comes from the business of this world because we don't have time to truly encounter solid relationships. I mean we see people at work, we see people in the train, on the street and even in our buildings we live. We have all these superficial relationships but often they make us feel even more lonely as time goes on. We realize that what we have and pursue isn't fulfilling. We yearn to be held, to be loved, to be accepted. I mean it seems so natural to desire these things. I believe we were created this way. The Bible says in Genesis that God created Adam and he was lonely so God then created Eve. It was a true relationship anointed by God. It was real and meaningful. It also seems that we all have a desire to understand the supernatural. Almost everyone I encounter has a belief in something. That desire also seems natural and a born trait in us. The Bible says that even the rocks cry out to the Lord. Does that mean that we are as dumb as rocks? Probably not but what it does say is that everything points to this feeling of wanting more. It comes from a desire to walk with God and to know Jesus. I think many people are lonely just because they are running from the calling in their life to come to know Jesus. See when I lost my son and I felt abandoned and alone I realized that in the book of Romans we are given a promise that ALL things work for good for them that love the Lord. It was through the death of my son that I allowed my faith in Jesus to grow to move all the way to New York City to start a church. My desire is that all those lonely will try it out. I mean everyone pays for all these self-help books and courses. They pay for gym memberships, for alcohol, for drugs, for entertainment. Church is free. I really encourage if you are feeling lonely to get in contact with others and explore where this feeling is coming from. Don't have a friend? Well, you are reading this so talk to me.

So, I challenge you today to be more like Victor...reach out to those that are lonely and give them a hand. And by the way, I did get my free hug.

-Pastor Dennis Minner
The Awakening Church/Owner of Sian Clothing
www.theawakeningnyc.com

FOR PICTURES OF THE FREE HUGGER AND THE CRAZY ICE CREAM MAN LOOK IN MY PICS UNDER THE AWAKENING!