Be The Change!!!

Having had a very challenging not to mention nerve wrecking week, my friend and I decided a forbidden lunch from a fast food place would serve as the much needed therapy.  So we did just that, because we can :). As we downed our billions of calories ( at least that's how it felt with each bite), a little boy aged about 8 yrs approached us holding what turned out to be one of those fraudulent Sunday school  forms. Before u frown and judge me for calling them fraudulent, remember I have been here a while now so I am properly acculturated and can tell genuine from fraud like a boss :). It turns out some of these kids are given those forms by their parents who stay at home drinking to come collect money. A big shame on those adults who in this winter cold send out their kids to the streets to beg. Shame on you!!! These kids are supposed to be at school kindling their hopes of a bright future. Back to my encounter, I told the little one that I knew it wasn't genuine hence I wasn't going to contribute. He didn't  budge, instead in a small voice he said, " could you then please buy me something to eat?" That's when I looked at the kid properly. His lower lip was bleeding from what looked like he had had a beating and he genuinely looked hungry. My heart sunk.My maternal instincts flared. I just wanted to hug him and take him home for a warm meal and judging from the look on her face, my friend shared the feeling. Because taking him home wasn't a feasible option, we got him a meal instead. 

Why am I blogging about this child? He has been on my mind since. He isn't the first child or person I have met asking for change, but this particular incident for some reason left me feeling impotent. Having fed him that afternoon was obviously a drop in the ocean, because he is only a statistic in the times we are living in. As we engage vigorously in the fight against HIV, cancer awareness and campaigns against drugs, I feel we have shifted our focus to some extent if not completely from the hungry and homeless. Perhaps we have become so accustomed to seeing them, that our compassion for them has dwindled. The few benevolent souls left are not enough to efface this asperity we are facing. The few Coins we hand them or the grants are hardly enough for their basic needs in these hard economic times. I can't quite place a finger on what more needs to be done beyond empowerment and opportunity creation already in motion (which in my opinion is not enough),  but I believe we all in our different ways have what it takes to make a change. 

As you live your life today, spare a thought for those not so privileged and in your own way try to make a permanent change in a single life; because you can. Think beyond giving the coins. We are the youth they were waiting for. Lets be the change we want to see in our world. It is far from impossible. 

We can't help everyone, but everyone can help someone ~ Ronald Reagan