HOPE CANNOT BE BOUGHT OR SOLD – YET EVERYONE MUST HAVE IT. Hope is the place where dreams are born, and no place on earth needs hope more than in areas ravaged by extreme poverty. To attempt to live without hope destroys a person physically, mentally and emotionally. It takes a toll so severe that… [Read more…]
DOES IT MATTER HOW A CHILD DIES? You are driving alone down a city street. It is a nice day and you are in no particular hurry. You are observing the speed limit of 40 miles per hour and you are paying full attention to your driving. Your cell phone is turned off, and… [Read more…]
THE TAPESTRY OF THE HUMAN FAMILY IS MADE UP OF 7 BILLION INDIVIDUAL FACES, EACH ONE EQUAL TO THE OTHERS. Every armed conflict that has ever taken place, every war that has ever been fought and every genocide that has ever broken out has all occurred because of our absolute refusal to accept the fact… [Read more…]
WATCHING HIS CHILD DIE WAS KILLING HIM. All through the night his daughter’s fever would rage and then suddenly she would shake violently with chills. Her small head throbbed with a stabbing pain that made her cry incessantly. At times she seemed to be slipping away, but then she would fight back and be with… [Read more…]
LEARNING TO KILL CHANGES A PERSON FOREVER. Although small for his age, Samir held the AK-47 steady. He had been given a direct order to shoot the old woman in front of him, and he didn’t dare make a mistake. He had no idea why she had to die, but that was not his… [Read more…]
WHAT GOOD HAS EVER BEEN ACCOMPLISHED BY HATE? There is not a single positive thing that can be said about hatred. It is utterly useless, without any benefit to humanity what-so-ever. In fact, it does more harm than any other human emotion. It is the basis for racial prejudice; it causes conflict and wars and even… [Read more…]
EXTREME POVERTY KILLS WITH ASTONISHING SPEED. 1,250 human beings will die from extreme poverty in the next hour. They die continuously at this rate, without let up, day after day. The dying does not slow down on weekends or on holidays. Death has no concern for age, race, religion or gender. No one is spared.… [Read more…]
TIME IS THE ENEMY OF CHILDREN IN EXTREME POVERTY. Can you remember what you did 40 days ago? Most of us can’t. In just over a month we forget what we were so preoccupied with, what we were so worried about and what pressures we were under. Whatever seemed so important just 6 weeks ago… [Read more…]
REFUGEES ARE HUMAN BEINGS WHO HAVE LOST EVERYTHING WE TAKE FOR GRANTED. A refugee is anyone who leaves their home and their possessions in order to protect their physical well-being. Becoming a refugee is usually a last resort that occurs in the most desperate of situations that, unfortunately, changes their life forever. Obviously none of us… [Read more…]
HOW CAN WE GO ABOUT OUR COMFORTABLE LIVES WHILE MILLIONS OF HUMAN BEINGS NEEDLESSLY STARVE TO DEATH EACH YEAR? Having enough food to eat is a fundamental human right, and because there is more than enough food for everyone, there is absolutely no justification for life threatening hunger to occur. Each day there are… [Read more…]
OUR LACK OF COMPASSION ALLOWS 10,950,000 HUMAN BEINGS TO DIE EACH YEAR IN EXTREME POVERTY. Compassion is having the ability to understand someone else’s suffering, and having the desire to take action to alleviate that pain. It is the quality that allows you to step outside of yourself and see the true needs of others, including complete strangers… [Read more…]
LABELS REINFORCE PRECONCEIVED LIMITATIONS. The human race loves to label itself, particularly those that seem different from us. We often label based on physical appearance. Someone is tall or short, old or young, thin or overweight, pretty or homely and it goes on and on. We also like to label by personality. Someone is happy… [Read more…]
TRUE SACRIFICE IS RARE BECAUSE IT REQUIRES CHARACTER AND MORAL STRENGTH. For some people the idea of sacrifice is a completely alien concept. They spend their entire lives expecting others to make sacrifices on their behalf, but it never even occurs to them to return the favor. They quickly fall into the habit of constantly… [Read more…]
DEATH DOESN’T JUST HAPPEN WITHOUT A REASON. It is 11:45 on a Saturday night and you are sound asleep when the phone rings. You fumble around for the receiver, pick it up and mumble “hello”. The man’s voice on the line is very calm, but the words he says changes your life forever. A quick… [Read more…]
25,000 CHILDREN DIE EACH DAY FROM EXTREME POVERTY…THEY DON’T HAVE TO. In developing countries, children die out of our sight. We are vaguely aware that it is happening, but it is not something we have to personally deal with. The world conveniently looks away because the media refuses to cover the story. But what… [Read more…]
THERE IS NO GREATER JOY IN LIFE THAN HAVING A BABY. The union of two human beings that produces a third is the most important bond that can be formed by humanity, and the resulting birth is an exalted and beloved moment in every society around the world. There is something about the creation of new life that… [Read more…]
February 19, 2012
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