Being in a city with neon lights and water shows all over the place, I realize more and more just how desensitized of a people we are...scratch that...I don't know your story, so I'll reflect on mine. I realize that when I see destruction from earthquakes on the TV of people's homes utterly in ruins with no hope of normalcy in the near future that I sometimes shrug it off. I realize that often when I see horrid pictures of hungry babies it doesn't always tear me apart like it should. I realize that sometimes things don't satisfy me or entertain me (i.e. firework shows) because I've seen better or been there, done that. And to some degree I think these are all side effects/results/etc. of wealth and privilege.
It wasn't until I held an orphan baby that had no one to love her daily that I really understood those pictures and that need. It wasn't until I looked over the top of tin roof houses that I realized the poverty that is the normal for many. It wasn't until the students I've taught in Chicago and Vietnam showed me with their eyes how much my time meant to their hearts that I understood the value of my knowledge beyond a GPA or college degree.
It wasn't until...
I think about these things often. I am aware I cannot change the world, but I become more conscious each day of just how intertwined all of our lives are. We are the world. Sometimes looking out for the happiness of another is looking out for your own happiness.
I hope at some point we will stop needing to see things/touch things/experience things firsthand to understand the reality of the issues and need surrounding us. I pray that our vision becomes one of bold clarity--the ability to see right where we need to be and who God has for us to help. That's what I pray and long for. This video surprising came up when I was looking for a song to teach the word "where" to my second graders. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Glny4jSciVI
...Today I planned lessons for 1st, 2nd, and 5th grades, and college nursing students. It was good.
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