FRIDAY 55
Predators surround their prey in darkness, ready to snatch boys from families, make them one of the bloodthirsty pack.
During a fast a world away the stomachs of well-fed teens growl like wolves.
Having felt the hunger of the prey, having seen their faces, my daughters' consciences haunt them like a distant howl at midnight.
DA COUNT
Predators surround their prey in darkness, ready to snatch boys from families, make them one of the bloodthirsty pack.
During a fast a world away the stomachs of well-fed teens growl like wolves.
Having felt the hunger of the prey, having seen their faces, my daughters' consciences haunt them like a distant howl at midnight.
DA COUNT
I wish I could say the first part of the 55 were fiction. Sadly, it's not. All over parts of Africa and Asia children are stolen away from their families and turned into soldiers under threat of torture and death. The devastated families and communities are already ones living in poverty and hunger. Last Spring Diana and Calypso participated with others in The 30 Hour Famine to raise money to feed hungry children. (The group raised enough to feed about 20 children for a year.) It meant they fasted for 30 hours and spent the time with others doing the same. During their time they were educated about hunger in the world and about child soldiers in particular. One of the activities during the fast involved each participant being give $25 and sent to the grocery store. They were directed to buy the most amount of the highest nutrition, non-perishable food to donate to the local food pantries.
Both of my girls came away changed by the experience and have talked about it periodically for the last year. They found out how much in their own lives that have that is worth counting and became profoundly aware of those who have so little. They recently found out the dates for the next event and are eagerly looking forward to participating again. Isaac has heard about it for a year and thinks he wants to be involved this time around too. In addition to counting that my children are safe and well-fed I'm counting their awareness of others not so blessed and their desire to do what they can to tell others and to ease the suffering.
Both of my girls came away changed by the experience and have talked about it periodically for the last year. They found out how much in their own lives that have that is worth counting and became profoundly aware of those who have so little. They recently found out the dates for the next event and are eagerly looking forward to participating again. Isaac has heard about it for a year and thinks he wants to be involved this time around too. In addition to counting that my children are safe and well-fed I'm counting their awareness of others not so blessed and their desire to do what they can to tell others and to ease the suffering.
31 comments:
That was an absoulutely haunting 55, Lime. What amazing girls your daughters are for participating in such an event. Kudos to them and kudos to you for posting about it.
Wow, your kids are impressive little folks.
Oh Lime that is so cool, I doubt many adults have ever fasted for 30 hours.....(Um I think I may have)
What an effective way to get kids to eat their vegetables!
Excellent 55, Lime. Wow.
The is a book that is probably next on my reading list called "A Long Way Gone - the memoirs of a boy soldier". The author is one of the boy soldiers who got out! I'm sure this will be a moving, haunting read.
wow, very powerful 55. Thanks for the explanation.
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Well done to your girls, they are to be applauded, and a great 55 highlighting the problem.
Mine's up too.
What a great way to raise awarness, as they will remember it. Nice one!
This is so touching. Your daughters are amazing & it is no surprise since they were raised by Super Mom!
It is is wonderful that in giving, they have enriched their lives with compassion and generosity of hearts!
Thumbs up & three cheers for Lime & family !!
Your kids are amazing, but that's not surprising with a terrific mom like you. :)
Good lessons learned. Kudos for your kids for getting involved...
Props to your children, most children don't care about what is going on with others around the world.
Actually the young boys being stolen and turned into soldiers, there was a video made by a group on this subject. I can't remember who the group is but my daughter wanted me to watch it one day because her class had been talking about how blessed we really are.
Great 55 and Da Count!
amen, sister.
This is an extremely elegant 55 Lime!! I love it. And what a heartfelt Da Count.
--snow
Until one reads something like this, it is so easy to think the "poor me" thought from time to time. As frustrating as it can be in day-to-day life here to think up something to fix for a meal for one's family and come up "dry" -mentally speaking -at least the majority of us DO still have some food available in the house, somewhere, even if we look around the kitchen and think "Gee, nothing to eat, cause nothing 'sounds' good to me." As poor as my Mom and grandparents and I were when I was a kid, as many times that my funds were extremely low when my kids were growing up or as broke as we may get now and again today, we have never been without ANYTHING to eat in the house and for that, I am really thankful but never really appreciate that bounty, even if it is a bit slim now and again, that there IS something here to eat after all while so many have absolutely NOTHING. That was an excellent post; an eye-opener for sure and also another reason to be really proud of your kids for trying to do something to better life for others.
I just couldn't even imagine!!
Have a great wknd and you have some terrific kids! I think they get it from their mom ;o) I think SHE'S pretty terrific myself!!
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What a wonderful thing and so are your daughters. I think I could buy into that. I think it is something my niece would really benefit from.
It's grief worthy that children are forced to grow up too quickly to feed the insatiable greed of the powerful few - whether it be the child soldier, child prostitute or child labourer. :(
well done. and thanks for this post, I always appreciate a fresh dose of reality
It's great for kids who have had full tummies all their lives to understand how fortunate and blessed they are. It's good for them to realize the plight that so many hungry kids face every day, and how it feels for them to go to bed hungry. Hooray to your girls for taking part in helping to feed the hungry!
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What an excellent, mind opening activity for the girls. I may see if there is something like that available around here.
Great post.
The sad thing is famine in a lot of these countries didn't exist. Well, it existed, but nowhere near this scale. Then the civil wars happened (thanks to the after effects of European colonialism, which really screwed up Africa).
For example, Ethiopia was a prosperous country. When I say that, people immediately think "huh?" but it's true. Ethiopia actually held off an Italian invasion. They were a prosperous country until the civil war. Now, it's plagued by famine. Really sad. And to make things worse, what you're saying is 100% true. The civil wars are snatching up young boys to keep them going.
That's sobering. And good for your daughters, that's very impressive. The situation for children in Africa is so desperately bad it's hard for me to imagine. As a mother, it hurts me to imagine it.
The fund-raising Famine is big in Australia is well - and I like the way you've highlighted the message getting through to the next generation.
My idea about your 55 was that your girls were trying to bring Issac over to the "girl" side. I was way off. Nicely done!
Children like yours are the leaders of tomorrow that make me gleeful about the future.
It is great that you keep your daughters growing as active and aware members of their community. I am glad to have read this post and it makes me think how I need to impart some conscience on my girls as they grow up. Thanks!
To encourage your children to participate in such a fundraiser is most admirable - especially as it allows them to become aware of the unhappy way that other people of the earth have to live. Thanks for the great post.
Look at these children you're raising.
Look at you all. Well done.
I actually was reading your 55 like "girls hitting puberty and chasing boys"....
Then the count changed all that... It's really sad to know that happens.
And I'm sorry this is like 5 days late!!!
A very important lesson.
Only one hang up: We, in the rich world nowadays do import food from all over the world. Right?
Then we have to think twice: What do benefit the workers the most?
The cheapest food?
Food stamped "Fair Trade"?
OK, Ok - I know that's people that do sail under false flag, but in General: "Fair Trade" benefits the hard working peoples at farms around the world more than products without that mark.
So, how to explain the difference - what a difference it makes is more correct. i.e. Cheap for us, can be hard for some families to survive. Sometimes I wonder: Bananas brought to Norway for less than a USD for one lbs. How can that be possible? In the value chain, there are so many to profit, so what's left for the "pickers"?
ok. This is Viking thoughts. I but "Fair Trade" and "Organic". It costs at least the double. But we can live with that fact. Eat less then and avoid red meat. One kg (or 2 lbs) of read meat takes 7 kg (15 lbs) of grain to produce. Crazy? Besides the fact: Growing grain means deforestation. And of top of that: It has suddenly been "green" to use biodiesel. Foodprices are rising in a tempo never seen before. We in the rich countries can cope with it, but what about people that used to spend 80-90 of their low income for food?
Lime, sorry, excuse. But I hope your two darlings can see and learn more than what a dollar means and is worth. At least it's a fabulous and positive start.
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