A new land, a new dream...

Previously, I had written about a friend whose ideas differed from mine. Although we are friends, we think and view differently issues pertaining the world. Regardless of his response, I still respect, cherish, and value our friendship. Not a single part of me sees him differently after he told me how he truly felt about a citizen's responsibility to love every child as a mother would (analogy of Loeb). Instead of drawing us apart due to our different way of thinking, I would argue that it brought us closer. I was surprised at his response. I thought I knew him, yet he acted in a way I would not have foreseen! This is amazing because it opened my eyes and I realized the importance of hearing all arguments that people have pertaining certain issues. If we only listen to what we want to hear, it diminishes our power to think outside the box. It is actually insulting I believe, and we are doing it to ourselves. The fact that I thought all my friends shared my same thoughts was extremely foolish. Only now I see the hidden power of diversity and how strongly influenced we can be by it.

Since I was 12, I have been exposed to a world I truly believed I could not fit into. Back in Peru, I was a straight A's student, good athlete and well spoken. When I came to the United States my plane seemed to have landed in an unknown place. There were different rules to everything. Streets, local markets, neighborhoods, parks were different. At school all the kids had grown up knowing their childhood friends that the need of new, different looking acquaintances was not an option. On top of that of course was the fact that I did not speak English. Even my peculiar "Good Morning" was seen as too formal and funny spoken. Fitting in was not an option anymore, it was a must. In order to survive in this enormous society, I had to learn new set of rules, new costumes, and of course a new language. It took me a couple of years to not be extremely self conscious of speaking in a large group of people, however once in a while I still feel anxiety whenever I have to speak. Although I have been living in this marvelous place for almost seven years, I cannot help but to feel like an outsider at times, it is a feeling that I believe will be with me until the day I must depart. However, there are times were I truly feel like I belong to this country and that I am too, an American. The gratefulness I feel towards this place that has given me so much is indescribable. In return, I feel the necessity to serve my community to its every need. This is what I would do if I was back in Peru, give back to the soil that has accepted me and my family as new members of society, and has been my support, home, fortress and dreams.

Reflection Questions: Chapters 9 & 10

CHAPTER 9: WIDENING THE CIRCLE

Loeb discusses, in this chapter, the importance of seeking out other people whose points of view may be different from yours. He also talks about the importance of involving many different groups to work on social action issues. What does he mean when he states, "The more listen to those whose experiences and perspectives are unfamiliar, the more we realize what draws us together"? Give an example from the chapter of how people who generally might seem to have nothing in common worked together to make a positive change. Think about your own life, and ask yourself how ofter you put yourself in situations where you are exposed to people who may have very different ideas or lead very different lives than your own.

CHAPTER 10: COPING WITH BURNOUT

Have you every been burned out while involves in a social cause? What about while participating in other activities? Does fear of burnout hold you back from social involvement? How do we balance our larger commitments and our personal lives? What are some ideas in the chapter that could help prevent your burning out?

Looking In Before Out

I agree with Leob's quote of caring for all children not just our own but this quote still invokes the idea that we are not all family. When I think of humanity I think of a collective species that has risen to power in this world because of our capabilities to collectively accomplish objectives. We need to start looking at everyone as members of our family, not outsiders that we chose to assist. I believe that our families are simply specific people that God has set as our primary responsibility. Any of one of us, if we were in a fire, would save our cousin, or nephew, but would probably save our siblings or parents first. It's not that we don't care about our cousins or love them any less but we have a natural instinct to assist our immdiate family because of our notion of this God given responsibility. This example shows how we do need to consider the world as our family and help them, but at the same time not foresake our own responsibilities. If everyone stepped up to the plate and helped their families as they should, very little community service would be needed in our world today. Since this is not a perfect world though, not a responsibilities are met, fathers abandon families, mothers neglect their children, and siblings fight rather than protect eachother. And so, we who have been blessed with families, who have lived up to their responsibilites, are called on to help those less fortunate. Yet at every moment we must be mindful to not neglect our own responsibilities. Just as the Bible asks, we must ask ourselves, how can we remove the splinter from our neighbor's eye with a log in our own?

Hold My Hand

As I reflected on the quote and shared it with a friend, I found myself wondering how much I personally care about other people's children, especially those I will never meet, in the situations I'd rather not even think of.

I shared the quote with one of my friends and her first response was "I don't think it's the most important thing you have to do, but it is our responsibility as human beings to take care of other human beings." My friend said that her family, her kids, and her life do come first. If there is an issue or emergency in your family you definitely take care of that first, before you seek to help the other children of the world. I conversationally asked her what she personally does to help those other human beings and she said she participates in fundraisers, she supports charities, etc.

Her response was basically what I expected. I'll be the first one to admit I often do put myself and my needs ahead of others' need. I think that as much as it is in our human nature to care for others, it's also in our nature to want to look our for our own selfs first. I think most people would have a similar response: they recognize the world our there need us, and it's our responsibility to change it and take care of it, but for the most part we don't go beyond our comfort zone to partake in that responsibility. Tying in with what we have discussed before, I think the reason this happens (a realization without action) is because a lot of times the issues are close to home, it's far away and it doesn't affect us personally. It's not until it affects us personally, someone close to us, or a neighbor, like Virgina's neighbor who died, that we take that extra step toward the change.

The good thing is programs like SLICE and even the honors forum at PVCC give the students involved the knowledge, courage, and means to make that first step!

WE ARE THE WORLD

You learn things you never knew about yourself when you are involved in community service (volunteering services). This is because your social involvement brings out the real part of strength and vision in you, as it sparks out the hidden qualities you never thought you had, resurrect your hiding courage to make a change, and reflect your accomplishment as you see the effects (results) of your service to your community. At this juncture, you will see your self from the view point of your community, you will see how much lives you have saved, and you will see how much hope your service had brought to the hopeless youth living on the street. And this is where you make a whish like the Stanford Student "I hope that one day my grandchildren will get to have the same experience working in the same homeless shelter that I did." The student's involvement in the homeless shelter allowed his life to count for something positive, as it reintegrated his mind and body to pass his desire for social change onto his unborn generations. This I think made him believe that he can influence the society as much as the society influenced him, knowing that we are the element of change.
When we join with others with common goals, we open up new possibilities by babe stepping. It's normally hard to take the first step, but when we do we bring our efforts to light by inspiring others that never believed in change. Like the sharecropper Negros that lead out the civil rights movement, they never gave up even when they were faced with discriminations, they held on to their hope and faith passing it onto their next generations. Even when they were dead, their stories still imparted the new generations to carry on from where they stopped. The world today is far better than what it used to be in the 80s, people now share concern and love for people they never knew, not judging them by their color, background or nationality, but having the fundamental believe that we are our brother's keeper, and that we can make the world a better place for all. TAKE A STEP, MAKE A CHANGE, AND LEAVE A FOOTPRINT AND YOUR GRANDCHILDREN WILL STEP AFTER YOU. "We are the world, we are the people, lets make it a better place for you and me" PEACE.

Set an example for the younger generation

I decided to ask both my boyfriend and my mom what they thought about the idea that focusing beyond our families is fundamental to our public lives and commitments. I explained to them both the idea in Loeb's chapter on Values, Work, and Family that many people tend to always want more for their children, and because of that will continually strive for improving their salaries, living situation, extracurricular activities, etc. I also explained that because this is a pretty common concern, some people don't really prioritize the time to go out of their way and donate their time to good causes that they believe in.

I expected my mom not to believe that it is important to dedicate your time to a charitable cause if your family isn't 100% taken care of because this is the way I remembered being brought up. It was always all about providing the best for me, and because of this I never really got the idea that you don't have to have everything in your life taken care of and you can still take some time out of your day to help others who may not have it as good as you. In fact, i never really realized the full extent of unfortunate events that could take place, or how severe poverty could actually be. I always sort of kept to myself. It wasn't a surprise to me that my mom thought you should definitely take care of your family before you even think about reaching out to help someone you don't even know. After we talked about it more, she started to realize that what Loeb was saying made sense; however, she still stuck to her original view.

My boyfriend didn't really have a particular view on the subject. He was sort of just debating the postivies and negatives with me. He was really open to either view, but he ended up agreeing that what Loeb said was the view that made the most sense. He agreed that it is important to set examples for your children by giving of yourself to others, and to look for opportunities to teach them valuable lessons throughout doing so.

I happen to agree with Loeb as well. I honestly think that if anyone thought about it long enough, it would make the most sense to set examples for your children that will empower them to believe their voice is meant to be heard and that they can make a difference. I think that a lot of times people just really want to be a good parent, so they are just concerned with doing what is immediately good for their child and this idea may just not occur to them. I hope that I can keep this idea in mind when raising my children, and that I can empower them to speak up for what they believe in.

Be Fortunate

Simply searching for a picture using the key word 'child' brought up several conflicting images. From images of child soldiers in Burma and starving children to happy smiling faces, the one constant remains their little innocent faces. Flipping through pages of images, I found these two, side by side, to be sadly ironic. A young boy, clearly starving with a distended belly, and a young girl refusing the offered food.

Being aware of other children growing up in other communities can be a difficult goal to manage. Often, there is so much going on at home and all around you that you don't even stop to think about how less fortunate individuals may be living. Of course everyone sees those commercials on television showing various children living in less than ideal conditions asking for money to help provide a better life for them. We're all aware of individuals like this, especially in the back of our minds. However, in cases like the one above, it's doubtful to believe that the girl is even considering the possibility of others going without yet another meal. While it is important to be considerate of those immediately around you, it is also wise to keep in mind what conditions others are forced to live in and how fortunate we are to have what we have, even if it seems small compared to our neighbors.

"Fortunate are those who have learned the best way to get is first to give through useful service." http://thinkexist.com/quotes/with/keyword/fortunate/

It Takes a Village to Raise a Child

"Our most fundamental responsibility as citizens is to love not only our own children, but other people's as well--including children we will never meet, who grow up in situations we'd prefer to ignore."


Wow what a great quote! As soon as I read it I thought of the kids at Horses Help. The kids that we work with are not related to me and they are growing up in tough situations that people don't like to think about.

I totally connected with this quote because my parents have always said it takes a village to raise a child. Regardless of whether or not a child (or person for that matter) is related to me, I feel like I should treat them as I would like to be treated and watch out for them. My mom was always the parent who sat outside in our driveway when I played with the kids from our neighborhood because she felt like it was her job to watch out for all of us, not just me.

Anyway...back to the question. I asked a few people how they felt about Leob's quote and I was surprised by their responses.

• The guy I asked said, "well I wouldn't take a child in and just treat them as my own, but I would be neighborly." From this response I felt like part of him wanted to do the right thing and help a kid out but at the same time he wasn't completely comfortable with treating them as a member of his family. Maybe because as a child we would let my friends sleep over or have dinner with us because they lived in a single parent home and we didn't want them to be at home by themselves, but I'm just used to treating people like a member of the family. I'm not saying you should just open up your home to a stranger and right away feel comfortable treating them as a member of the family, but in my house after a few times of someone being over they were like family. I had friends and neighbors who either both their parents worked or they lived with only one of their parents and we would have them over after school so they didn't have to walk home by themselves and be home alone all afternoon.

• The girl I asked said she tries to treat everyone well and knows that even doing little things for people and kids makes a difference. She also agreed though, that it would be hard to treat people like a family member if they are not one. Her response got me thinking, if I was to talk to more people would more women agree with this quote compared to men? I think that women have a motherly instinct and when they see a child, who ever they belong to, they just assume a motherly role. Now please don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that there aren't guys out there who will agree with this quote and feel responsible for other children too (I know there are a lot of great guys out there :D) it's just that I think women might be more open to the "it takes a village" theory.

I was also considering whether ones age would affect how they felt about this quote. Maybe more mature (nice way of saying older) people might agree with this quote more than people our age. In some ways I believe our society has become more for ourselves and think only about our family. In my opinion we need to return to the days where we looked out for all the kids in our community and realized that just because they aren't "ours" doesn't mean we shouldn't look out and love them too.

Not My Problem

I have had this conversation with people before, and the answer is just like the book's excuse. I have to deal with my problems first. Sadly the average American is working harder and longer for less. The book also mentioned the soccer moms and the extra school activities. Parents hope their kids lives are better than their own. If they have to sacrifice their own personal time to focus on their kids future it is worth it. I know we most help our community, but I understand why people don't volunteer they simply don't have the time. As long as the working class is getting pushed down by the mega wealthy this will be the case. When the CEO makes 460 times what the average worker makes we will have to work harder.

Which bring me to this point we need to stop the infighting between the poor and if your not a millionaire your poor. People maybe comfortable, but if they lost their job tomorrow the money would dry up fast. We need to raise the tide to raise the other boats. We need to stop yelling about stupid stuff and look up at the ivory towers.

So maybe it is our problem, we need to help out our fellow man to gain the power back. We need to help others so they can gain their own voice. We need to organize as Americans and start getting our heads back above water. Social Society and Medicare is not going to bankrupt this country the fact that Warren Buffet pays less percentage of his wealth in taxes than his secretary will. The fact that the rich can't get enough money. the top ten percent of American have 95 percent of the wealth. The top one percent of one percent has 25 percent of the money. That is what is going to kill our country from the inside out. No one has worked that hard in their life to deserve that much money. We have to stop making excuses and focus on what is right people deserve to be treated humanely. A Dad should not have to work his third doble in a wee and miss his kids baseball game. If our kids are going to succeed we need others to succeed as well. It is not always dog eat dog. Sometimes it is your problem too.

We're all in this together

We may not see how other people’s children affect our lives now, but we will in the future if we haven’t already. Others people’s children are the people that will be interacting with our children and having relationships with them; they will be running our country and serving our community. So if we ignore the problems of others and don’t think we will be affected by them, then we are greatly mistaken. If we want to ensure the well being of our children and their futures we need to do what we can to improve the lives of others. We should be leading by example for not only our children, but all children. If we make the effort to show them how important it is to help others then someday we can hope they will follow our lead.

We tend to take for granted all that we have and forget that there are so many people out there that don’t have the common everyday things that give us security such as: healthcare, insurance, homes, and food for dinner. Our society is so self centered at times, causing many of us to grow up thinking only about our own needs. Cynicism plays into this as well. We are told things like, we have to look out for number one because if you don’t no one else will, we should be independent and not rely on others for help, we need to watch our backs because you never know who you can trust. When we grow up in a world that is constantly feeding us these warnings its hard not to focus mainly on ourselves, but it’s easy to ignore the problems of others.

When these kids that grow up in less favorable situations see that other people who aren’t their parents care about them and want to see them succeed, this might provide them with a new found hope and motivation to improve their lives. They might realize that things can be different for them. It restores their faith in mankind and hopefully empowers them to one-day reach out a hand to someone else in need.

When asking a friend about this they basically had the reaction of, “Well what can I do about that, I don’t have the money or resources to help take care of another person’s kid.” I explained that no one is asking you to do that. I also said that it’s not as difficult as one might think. There are so many simple things a person can do that will make a difference, and that volunteering your time and talents can be just as effective as donating money or goods. There is always something someone can do no matter what their economic status is.

Broaden Your Focus

I think that if I was to repeat Loeb’s quote, “Our most fundamental responsibilities as citizens is to love not only our own children, but other people’s as well…”, most people generally agree with the quote, but some people may feel that their family should come before helping out with other people. I think that is almost a selfish way to feel. Sure, you should always take care of your family, especially if the well being of one or more members is at stake, but I think that we really should try to help each other out even if we ourselves are struggling. You may think that you are not in the best position to start helping out with other people, but the little that you are able to give might make a difference to someone that is even worse off than you. Maybe being part of the community might help you out with your own struggles as well. We need to try to treat our community as if it was part of our family.

This same concept can go for helping out with people outside of the country. We may be having our own economic problems here, but in some countries, people are fighting to survive. How many times have we seen an ad for sponsoring a child in a third world country and just changed the channel? After the earthquake in Haiti, many people asked, “Why are we going to help out another country when we have plenty of our own problems here?” Although America is full of problems, we don’t have people buried under rubble and dying in the streets. Sometimes it is better to put our own issues on the back burner for a little and help someone else out in need. A better question may be, “Why does it take a horrible instant disaster to cause us to rise to action?” If people are frustrated with the lack of attention towards issues that are facing America, maybe it is time for them to step up and try to make a change.

"It's good, but I wouldn't do it," is one of the responses I've received from a coworker. At least he was honest. I talked to a few coworkers because I thought I would get more diverse responses from a more diverse group of people. I figured the people that we hang out with and grew up with are the most prone to giving the same responses as myself and each other.I did find that most people agreed with Loeb. They thought that children don't choose their parents and it is important to love all kids even if they are not your own because being a mentor can change someone's life and truly make a difference. However, I don't know to what extent they were being truthful. Will they love the children that are not theirs or are they just telling me they would because in western societies we are conditioned to answer questions like these a certain way? I believe a certain sense of political correctness directs how we respond to social question. Regardless of the fact, I believe that even if they did just say it for the sake of saying, I planted a seed in their head of something to think about on their way home and hopefully consider doing for the rest of their lives.

A means to an End: Response to Chapter 8 Reflection

There are several things I took from this segment, including: that the Stanford student believed that the lessons he derived from volunteer work was so impactful that he hopes his grandchildren will experience the same. The second thing is: that no matter how good our intentions and the service we put in to get all of American society on its feet and out of shelters it is not a reasonable goal.

What would it take to create a society where people didn’t have to sleep in shelters or in the streets? It would take billions of dollars, millions of jobs and countless thousands of full time volunteers. It is unreasonable to expect that we can provide for the millions of homeless in the course of a century, for our grandchildren. We can’t spend money that doesn’t exist, create jobs out of thin air and find a fulltime work force who will work for free. We live in capitalistic society; we are all about substance, wealth and power that is the basis of our world. No doubt, I’m sure the United States has the resources to certainly make a dent in our domestic homeless situation but it does not appear to have the will.

This is not say, “don’t volunteer” or “its not worth the time” , its to appreciate that when volunteering it is impossible to look at the big picture of ending homelessness and see it ending in our lifetime or our children’s life time. You should volunteer because you wish to help families out of compassion and the will to aid your community. Lack of resources doesn’t stop volunteers work or the work for a brighter future but it does hinder it. Without a great deal of resources from the government or government programs you won’t see dramatic change but know that YOU are making a difference.

“we should work to heal the wounds of our culture whether or not government programs support our efforts.”

We can change this world, together, united as one. We can help push the boundaries of poverty and homelessness, whether it’s helping one family, one person or one child; we can make a difference.

It may be impossible to set an end goal, but it is not impossible to help reach that end goal and help numerous people along the way.

-Nathaniel Chapman

Enviorment

What side are you on?

The quote that is stated is not a new concept to our desscusion. it has been stated many time by Loeb. It is reenforcing the fact that people ignore things that dont affect them directly, and unfortunatly this is true of most people. and i am as guilty as some of those people sometimes. just yesterday i was driving home from school and i drove past someone whose car had stalled on the side of the road. I felt really bad and i almost went back to help him but i then thought that someone else would. and sure enough when i had to go someplace and pass him again someone had helped him off the road into a near-by parking lot. i was glad that someone had helped him but kind of mad at myself for not stepping up, because it didnt really affect me if he got home or not.It is going to sound really cheesy but, there is a quote from the movie the princess diares that really stuck out to me. " then i realized how many stupid times a day I use the word I. and probalby all i ever do is think about my self, and how lame is that when there is around seven billion other people in the world?" This quote really reminds me that it is very selfish just to think about yourself.
I asked some children about the quote, and if they would help someone that they didnt know. All three of the children I asked said that they would help. This is because they have all beem raised by parents who have taught them these charitable qualites. I know that this is not true of all familes though. There is families that instead of heierlooms they pass on thier selfish tendencies. It really makes me go back and think if I am one of those people who doesn't go out of my way to help people. I believe that we all need to take a minute and figure out if we are helping or hurting the future generation with they way we behave now.

We should help anyone!

I told one of my teachers this quote on Tuesday and I'm sure she meant well but she agreed with the quote to a degree. She said "I will love my children more than anyone else and then when my children are not the priority i will help others if they need it." It seems kind of selfish but i agree with her. I believe we should help our own children first then move on the greater things. I'm sure there are people out there that would never care to help or love other children other than their own. But all of that can change, people are selfish today and humble tomorrow, they only care about something if it affects them directly. For an example the story of Micheal Lowe, He was helping build a Nuclear Reactor and when he found out his son may be drinking the contaminated water he got involved and then decided to speak out against it. As a citizen he should of cared no matter who was going to be drinking the water.
All of our choices affect other people but we usually never take into account who those other people are. If we focus more beyond our families and more on others we would help many people that may not have the power or courage to speak out for themselves. Overall in my opinion we should be our family first but have an idea of who we are going to help right after our family and remember that the decisions we make affect people that we may not know or love but we should care for.

TO CARE OR NOT TO CARE

Chapter seven seemed to be about getting involved no matter what you are doing, where you are working or what life you live. In the end doing something changes others lives and this ties into Loeb’s quote "Our most fundamental responsibility as citizens is to love not only our own children, but other people's as well--including children we will never meet, who grow up in situations we'd prefer to ignore." By volunteering or getting involved in your community you are helping others.

I did put myself to the task of asking my friends, via text, what they thought about Loeb’s quote. Some of the males I asked were very selfish; they said they wouldn’t really bother to help someone they don’t know. The women I asked said that helping others helps the future. I think they answered this way because most of them have never volunteered, they’ll do the occasional “walks”, but they haven’t helped a child with autism ride a horse. There’s a difference when you do a walk or when you collect donations, you know you are doing something good but you don’t see it. When I’m at Horses Help, I see it and I feel it.

Loeb is right; parents teaching their children to get involved is what makes the difference. I believe that even by recycling we are helping others, we are giving children (that are not ours) a better place to live in. I want to be just like my parents, so I will probably imitate everything they do. My parents have never been involved in volunteer work but when they saw how involved I got they became involved and now that my little sisters are seeing this they are doing it as well.

I honestly don't think my friends understood how the quote identifies with all of them. If we go back to last weeks blog about how activists gave us the rights we have today we will notice that those activists cared about kids that weren't theirs. They were fighting for the rights of people they didn't know. We ALL should agree with Loeb and help and CARE for EVERYONE.

"Love the whole world as a mother loves her only child"-Buddha

Priorities

When I asked my family and friends what they thought of Loeb's quote, "Our most fundamental responsibility as citizens is to love not only our own children, but other people's as well--including children we will never meet, who grow up in situations we'd prefer to ignore.", I received mixed reactions. My family and friends from church largely agreed with Loeb's statement and felt he was merely giving a detailed approach to the golden rule "do unto others as you would have them do unto you". They also think we need to empathize with those around us and those who are not well off if we are going to better our society, as action is started by empathy and passion. However, they also noted that they believe we have a responsibility first of all to our family and need to be sure they are well provided for, physically and emotionally, before we take on the causes of others.

My friends from school, work and elsewhere had other opinions on this subject. They said they thought it was a good idea in theory, but that it would be very hard to put into practice. They felt that it was all they could do to keep up with their responsibilities and priorities in life and to add more to that load of stress was not possible. They thought that they could feel love and empathy for those less fortunate than themselves, but did not feel as though there was much they could do about the situation.

I believe the fundamental difference between these two points of view comes down to one word: priorities. My family has made it a priority in their life to help those around them, even if it means giving up time and money. On the other side, my friends are in the time of their life where all their focus is on themselves. This isn't purely selfish motivation, as much of life is taken up with school and work, however I believe that sometimes we aren't quite as busy as we think. :) When it comes down to it, you will always be busy and have something else you can be doing; but you can still make time for the things that are important to you. It's all about what your priorities are.

Children Are The Future

"Our most fundamental responsibility as citizens is to love not only our own children, but other people's as well--including children we will never meet, who grow up in situations we'd prefer to ignore."
When I asked my family for their opinion on this quote, I got pretty much the same reaction from everyone. My sister said that she thinks that we should all treat other people's children the same as we treat our own because you never know how you may impact a child's life. A similar response from my brother was that every child in need deserves to have someone lend them a hand in some way. This did not really surprise me because both of them are very caring individuals. I am so proud of my little brother for getting involved with all the community service work that he does. At 15 years old, he has collected money and hundreds of donations for a medical clinic that serves homeless families, helped build a house, and volunteered at a soup kitchen. I hope that my little brother can continue to do community service so that he can inspire those around him to want to help out too. I think that it is great that children are getting involved with community service at younger ages. It gives them a chance to become passionate about helping others and understand the meaning of "loving thy neighbor". Children are going to be the ones determining the future and if we do not teach them well, we may all end up in a world more broken than it is today.
My hope for society today is that everyone may take this quote into account in their day-to-day lives. Sweeping problems under the rug because they seem too big for one person to handle or because it is not affecting you personally is not the way to handle things. Nothing gets better that way. Nothing changes.

It's our responsibility

I think that Loeb's quote is very important to understand and accept. Some may not like this idea, but it is the truth. Children deserve the same treatment, no matter what the situation is. It is not their fault they are in a bad situation, but the worlds. If we all followed this quote and accepted it, there would be hardly any children suffering. Unfortunately, that is not how the world works. Most people only care about themselves and find it easier to remain isolated from the rest of the world. It is not one specific country who is at fault but all of them. Sure there is groups and communitities of people that come together and help, but the number is far less than what our world needs. It is up to us as a global community to step up and make our world a better place.

For this blog, I chose to take the suggestion and ask a coulpe groups of people what they thought about the quote. I do have to say that the reactions were different with almost every type of group that I asked. The first people that I asked were my family. Basically they agreed with the statement and said that it was horrible how some people just don't care about others around them. However, they did say that they are guilty about not always having others' interests at heart. My brother basically said that since we are in an economic ressesion it has been harder to donate time and money. People are more focused on keeping their families above water that those who have already sunk are left helpless. We all wish this were not so, but for many it is. The second people I asked were my boyfriend and my best friend. When hearing the quote from Loeb, they agreed and said that everyone is full of good intentions but many times it is harder to follow through.

As for myself, I feel that it is very important to try and follow what Loeb is suggesting in his quote. No matter how busy and stressed out we may be. There is always someone in the world who is suffering. It is up to us to look after the children in the world who are less fortunate than ourselves. By doing that we affect not only our lives, but the people around us.

Hold the door, please!

You are at school and are walking into your respected building for the first class of the day. You see multiple other students walking in the same direction as you and filing into their classrooms. But you notice that you are approaching the door to the main hallway and the person in front you does not hold the door for you. You immediately think of how rude that was because they had no sense to even look behind them to notice you. Have you ever done that to somebody else? If you answer truthfully, many will say yes including myself.

You may think that opening the door is not a big deal for somebody, so why wouldn't somebody do that for you as well. If the lack of love for another neighbor is occurring at the small level such as that, imagine what is happening on a larger scale such as within sports, the government, or even within our own communities. Students on a college campus are possibly going to become the next President of The United States, the CEO of the Ford Motor company, or even the janitor at a local elementary school, and they can't even hold a door for their neighbor. That sounds a little harsh and may be a little exaggerated, but its a very scary thought.

I think that this behavior and thought process needs to be changed immediately because many don't realize the negative effect it will have on our future generations. If we can't even think about the people within a 10 mile radius of our home, how are we going to think about the people on the other side of the planet? Sounds impossible but it starts with the first step that will have a ripple effect on other people around the world.

Are you going to hold the door for a classmate tomorrow? Or let it slam in their face?

All for one, and one for all :)

Who are we not to help others, no matter who they or where they come from?

Loeb's quote was an interesting one, and after reading it, I couldn't seem to help but to hang on to every word.

Unfortunately, in today's day and age, I don't think many people feel the same. Repeating Loeb's quote in front of my friends, or a group of peers would prompt a reaction far from what would be [the right thing to do]. I'd probably get a lot of, "that sounds nice," or maybe, "people don't do things for me, so why should I do things for other people?"

We live in a society of selfish people. Unless it's affecting an individual directly, we want nothing to do with other people's problems.

The people of America make up one big team. When one succeeds, we all succeed. And we should be willing to help those that need a hand.

The only way we can advance in society, is to take both personal and community responsibility.

If you were struggling, you'd want help, or you'd want to know that someone cared.

So many people feel that way, yet our society is fixating on bettering themselves, when most of the time, they really aren't in any need of life improvement.

If we all work together and take care of one another, the world will be a better place.

If we can overcome selfishness, as a society, our fundamental responsibility as citizens can be achieved.

Village Idiot?

Volunteering has never been important in my family, as I have stated in an earlier blog, I got started because I wanted to learn about a hospital setting and...because it was my punishment. My mom grounded me and instead of taking my privileges away, she made me volunteer at the hospital she works at. From the beginning I didn't have the best few of volunteerism. In high school there were groups on campus that did community service, but I thought it was just to improve their resumes and to be "good people." College was all the teachers talked about, they never stressed the emotional, societal importance of volunteering. Until this class I hadn't quite made the connection between volunteerism and change. I knew that some people volunteered to help make someone else's life a little easier and I know that it is considered a change no how matter small. What I didn't realize was that the huge movements in our history's past was caused by volunteers. I thought they were superhuman... They had a cause/idea and it was their life. Poof. Just like that. How silly of me not to realize how encompassing the term volunteer is. After reading Loeb's book, I feel as though I need to re-learn my history lessons and apply my new insight.

I wonder now if my high school classmates understood the importance behind their volunteerism? Or if they were just resume building like I thought?

I understand how much more comfortable it is to participate in one-on-one volunteering, but for some it may need to start there. Take myself as an example, I am not one of those people who will theoretically jump in a swimming pool. I put one toe in at a time. The lesson that the Stanford student story offers to me is that once I test the waters, I shoudn't be afraid to jump. I know that the water is cold, but I know that I need jump to happen in order for me to swim. The Stanford student volunteered at a homeless shelter, but didn't take the next step or jump. Many of us don't. This is why I don't think that a world will exsist where people won't sleep in shelters. It will take awareness and much more dedication than most people are willing to give. I hope for the change, but I feel it will take a long time to open the people's eyes that are sewn shut by their ignorance.

Breathing Easy

Mayday, Mayday. The 747 passenger plane that you are on is losing altitude quickly. The shaky voice of the stewardess sounds on the intercom. She says, "oxygen masks will be deployed above you. Please secure yourself before helping others around you."

Whoa! Let us take a step back here. Has our society really become so individualized? Are we really wired to help ourselves before others? Sadly the answer seems to be yes. Unfortunately, this general mentality is a major roadblock for service. Loeb says that, "Our most fundamental responsibility as citizens, is to love not only our own children, but other people's as well-including children we will never meet, who grow up in situations we'd prefer to ignore." This ideal is quite contrary to the public mindset. If I were to propose this lifestyle to my peers, the reaction would be interesting. Many of my fellow students or humans would not agree or want to participate. They would think that they had to go and "get their own" before helping others. I don't exactly blame them. The oh-so individualized society has helped mold them into their mindset. We don't listen to WEPods or spend time on OURSpace. Rather we have set up bubbles of singularity, where we only extend a helping hand as far as we can reach without leaving the couch. The idea that Loeb proposes would be disregarded as something that "isn't my job" by many around me.

Its this sad mentality that has pervaded our society's moral structure. Loeb is exactly right in his quote about our need to serve others before ourselves. A similar lesson is found in form of a parable in the bible. Many rich men went to the temple to make offerings, but a poor widow and gave two coins, essentially all she literally has to offer. A teacher asked "who really gave more?"Although both parties gave, one gave without bars or holds. I think that we as a society have forgotten how to do what this poor widow has done. We have forgotten how to put others before ourselves. If we(starting with me) can do this, then serving, making a difference, and living in harmony will be so much easier and meaningful.

Fiction in the Real World

The face to face outreach process is amazing; being able to connect on a large scale network, like that, shows we are all connected in a universal web. Ever heard the expression "web of lies", that traps you in a sticky situation? Now we have a community web that supports every individual and a cause.

Bill Cusak had the right idea. By using one-on-one involvement, he encourage the development and growth of the web. He mobilized such a large number of people by surrounding them with familiar environments. Therefore, he was able to remove the terrifying part from activism by giving them comfort and support.

The Standford student meant he hopes his grandchildren, and people alike, will still be taking on the challenge of over coming homelessness, since the process will take so long to find a solution.

In an episode of Gilmore Girls, the main character, Lorelei Gilmore managed an in that burned down. In one night the town, of Starshallow, worked together to house the guest in their home over night. Yes, this is a television show; however, couldn't this network be used in real life. Maybe this is what we need to over come homelessness. By embracing and supporting a network, or web, of people we could find the necessary support to help people.

If we were to use this, we could help people in our community and on a bigger scale the nation and possibly even the world. For example, at my church we kept an ear out for people who were looking for a job and for people who were looking to hire. In this process we helped a 20 people, including me, to get a job. They also continued to follow up on people and see how their job is doing and how things are going.

Now applied to homelessness, we would be able to not only temporarily help people but also teach them how to help themselves. "Give a man a fish and feed him for a day, but, teach a man to fish and feed him for a life time," says all exactly what we as a community, country, and world need to do. If we all were connected we could help find homes, jobs, and any other necessities of life, and one person at a time, ending homelessness.

The process will take years, I do not believe it can be done by the time my grandchildren are old enough to volunteer because it takes so long to build trusting relationships with people. The bonds that are build will only make the web stronger and build life-time relationships.

Being Selfless

"The true meaning of life is to plant trees, under whose shade you do not expect to sit". ~Nelson Henderson

To care for others is to care for one self. I asked this quote to family members, friends, and even strangers to see how they would respond. Most of them reacted to it the way i thougt they would. One of the people i asked, told me that it meant "being selfess, understanding other peoples problems and being diverse" thats what crossed his mind when i read him the quote.



Im not surprised to see that there are people out there who understand the values and morals that should be upheald in society.
As i was reading the chapter i realized that many people are scared to take a stand because of all the things they could loose when they stand up for something. Nothing in life comes easy. Looking forward to a future where you COULD make a difference is a long shot away and looking at the present and giving up all that is comfortable and safe in this economy is not practical.

A quote from the Bible came to my mind as i was reading the chapter " Do unto others as you would have them do unto you". Now thats pretty powerful and saying a lot. How can you possible expect others to treat you and do things for you selflessly just because you might do it for them.

In the book, Loeb tells the story of Jorge Rivera who worked at ASI and was not getting paid enough. He talks about how he took a stand and the company raised his pay. When he realized the power that he possesed and the changes that he could make he spoke up. What shocked me was the fact that the company manager told Jorge to "look out" forhimself and that they would take care of him. They kept telling him to worry about himself.
If everyone in the world looked out for themselves, worried about themselves and didnt care about the wellfare and livelihood of others around them what would this world be like?

Seeing beyond oneself and ones own families and friends is very important to further the country and further the causes they trouble us all.
You never know who is watching you and looking up to you for inspiration, wating for you to step up.
When we think we are not treated fair and we dont have enough think of all the othes out there who are also feeling and going through the same things.


"The purpose of life is not to be happy - but to matter, to be productive, to be useful, to have it make some difference that you have lived at all". ~Leo Ro

Love to Be Loved

I was expecting a negative point from Mom when I told her about Loeb’s quote, “Our fundamental responsibility as citizens is to love not only our children, but other people’s as well-including children we will never meet, who grow up in situation we’d prefer to ignore,” but she gave me a positive respond. She told me that she cares about other people’s children but I didn’t believe her until she reminded me that she has taken action before. She reminded me of the poor family that the children’s mother had died of cancer and the father could barely able to feed his three children. When Mom heard about them, she couldn’t sleep. She told me that she felt what if that was us! So, she decided to do what she can to help them and that was by collecting a donation. I don’t know why sometimes we do help and take action, but we don’t count them, or I feel that’s not enough. But, I realized that no matter how big our action is, we still would see appreciation in these children’s or people’s eyes. And that what gives involvement a true meaning.

I liked what Marian Edelman wrote to her son about her responsibility towards her child and other people’s children whom share same school and street. She also brought up a very important point that it’s not the children fault if they grow up in a poor society or born with different color. So, instead of reminding those people that they are different by trying to have a separate life from them as if they don’t exist, we should open our heart for them because they need us the most. They need someone to show them love, and that simply could begin by becoming friends with them and showing them respect.

Even the Bible indicates that Jesus wanted us to love each other: “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another” (John 16.34). This show the importance of thinking of someone else needs rather than just ours. It’s hard to make people in the whole world to follow and understand that it’s our duty to love and help who in need of us. But, since we know that, we are going to be role models to the world.

Love For All Family

"Our most fundamental responsibility as citizens," Loeb writes, "is to love not only our own children, but other people's as well--including children we will never meet, who grow up in situations we'd prefer to ignore." When I made this statement in a room with some of my friends, they at first looked at me in confusion. Shortly after I requested they give their personal opinion the quote. They all said that it sounds like love your neighbor part of the Ten Commandments. In addition, helping of others around them and showing love to all that live on this planet. My family had a similar reaction pertaining to my brothers being fairly confused and walking away brothers. I was surprised to get this reaction from them but this explained much about them. They for one are talented listeners and respect what I have to say and try to help me.
This helps to exemplify the quote stated by Loeb about how to love and care about all other family members that live among us. Like this chapter was about, we have to keep true to our values and one overlying one is family. Often do we get lost within the lives we have chosen for our families and our own personal ambitions take us from our family. Even when a person may suffer, we have a difficult time dropping all those other distractions and helping that person out. This quote does not mean to abandon your family and those you care about to devote your life to your community and in need of aid. This means that we should treat them live family as we are all god’s children and brother and sister. Although some family may be closer to you but you can never forget the part of your family that will always need your help. Along all our paths to growing as humans during our time of service learning that if we live and act with love in our hearts we will never stray from helping our family in every way possible.

Sounds Good.

I was sitting here about to write my blog and I figured why not test this quote on someone and see thier reaction. Of course I did not just choose anyone I chose my boyfriend Cory. Now, Cory was raised a lot different from me, this is why I asked him. In my family community service was natural, it's what we did, and this was the opposite for Cory. So, after reading him the quote I asked him what he thought about this? "Sounds Good." is what he said. "What? Sounds good is all you got for me, seriously what do you think?" He was silent for a few seconds then said, "I don't know...it sounds good." Then it suddenly it struck me, of course this his how the majority of people would react. I believe even I would react that way hearing that from someone. The reason is because our minds are focused on ourselves and we think its a good quote, but seriously...who actually has the ability to make that big of a difference?

This is where the Stanford student comes along. "How can I really make that type of difference...where people would not have to live in shelters and be homeless? It is just life, this is what happens, right? There is nothing I can do but volunteer. That is giving the best I can..." This all runs through every persons mind at one point, doubts.

We have the duty and the need to inspire, we need to lead by example and we need to have faith. Because we CANNOT change people and society. They have to do that themselves. However, we can INSPIRE. LEAD BY EXAMLE. HAVE FAITH. Because by doing that we can make a difference, each and every one of us. People need to know this so that, "Sounds Good." is replaced with "It's true, I LIVE LIKE THAT!!"

Cory will experience making a difference that he thought was never possible one day. Hopefully, I will be right there with him.

"One small step for man..."

Micheal Jackson wrote "We are the world. We are the children. We are the ones to make a brighter day so let's start giving." There needs to be a balance of caring between our children, and children throughout the world. I think we need to give our children a sense of caring for those that don't have as much as they do. Our compassion mixed with theirs can make such an impact for other children. I've talked with my friends about kids, family, etc. They believe that as long as there family is safe, that's all that matters. they think that the poverty and hunger other children face each day is horrendous and should be resolved, but since their child is well-fed and taken care of, the less fortunate kids are not given another thought until maybe two weeks later, when one of them dies from hunger. Sounds a tad selfish, but in all honesty, most of us don't concern ourselves with issues until they are physically/mentally happening to us. I understand their point of view, and till recently, I would agree. One way to change our point of view is to open up our hearts, close our eyes, and imagine what we would do if our children were suffering. If the obvious answer doesn't pop into your head, then maybe it's time to venture into the world a little bit.

I think the lesson is that sometimes we have to pave the way for our descendants to follow. We hope they choose the path we've worked so hard one, or maybe even create one of their own that is just a good if not better. It would take a lot of money, patience, programs, and people to get everyone off the street. Not just that, the homeless would have to want something better for themselves, we cannot push them into getting off the street. If we consistently work on this I think that our grandchildren's children could impact the community enough to get most of the homeless off of the street.

It just takes one more step.

"Our most fundamental responsibility as citzens is to love not only our own children, but other's as well-- including children we will never meet, who grow up in situations we'd prefer to ignore."

It took me a while to actually figure out how to answer this question for my self because i was not sure what my real answer would have been. However, i thought about it and i think it is better said then done. People will go on and on saying," i am going to put time in,do community service,etc." but until its done, its all a bunch of talk. I am not talking down to these types of people, because I will admit i am one of them, we all have our own lives, we tend to focus on, and when we "get around to it" we will do what is convienent for us. I did not ask any of my friends what they thought about it or how they would react to something like this because honestly I think I would get the same answer out of them.

There is many things that we as citizens can do around our communities but do not realize how much of an impact it will have on people we do not even know. Helping out a family memeber or a close friend, honestly is an every day thing for most of us, we spare a couple bucks, or drive them home, and to them those are gestures that make a big difference to the reciever, but not the one doing the action. However, helping out children,parents, teens, who are less fortunate to have people around like all the time, see it as a blessing, or a HUGE gesture that leads them on with a positive attitude. We go on day to day, not knowing what is going on around the corner, in a different city, state or even country and we are thankful of the things we recieve to from others. But how does it feel to put the shoe on the other foot? How does it feel to give back to someone who does not neccasarily ask for it, but is thankful for what they recieve? Sometimes we take for granted the situations, and things we have in life and we really should step back and look at the bigger picture, and help other people feel just as comfortable living there day to day life.

Just in SLICE I have met new friends, new teachers, and new amazing people, i would have never met with out this great experince. We see places off the highways, and down the street that look like regular every day places, but when we walk inside there is a whole different story to what is going on and no matter who lives there, or even the story behind it, we should show that no matter who you are, we are all equal, and are not forced to lend a hand, we want to.

Teaching by examples

I found the experiment of asking people close to me about their opinion of focusing beyond our families as a fundamental to our public lives and commitments quite interesting.

I asked this question to two different types of friends. The first group enjoys a relatively good financial situation. They agreed on the importance of helping other kids, but when I asked them what kind of actions they had taken in the issue, they smirked and said "I barely have time to take care of my own children... maybe later". People were more prone to talk to their children about community involvement rather than actually teaching them by example. These people told me that lack of time is the first problem that they face. I wonder if this time shortage is due to the "treadmill effect" in which many try to keep up with social standards taught by a society of consumers. A society with values in which we should look successful based on maxim out credit cards.

The second group of friends consisted of people, who at some point in life have struggled and suffered, often without help. I found that more of these people have helped needy children, especially in connection with a church activity. In this case, they told me that they will continue helping as much as they can, as long as it doesn't affect the quality of their family time. I found this group more sincere than the group asked before, but still with a tone of "giving only of their spare time".

As parents, it is important to try and give our kids the best education as well as a better life than what we had. However, we don't understand that our actions are sending a totally different message than our words. As Loeb said, children that were raised in a family with no sense of community involvement are more likely to see "personal survival as paramount, while social involvement as a luxury". Loeb continues, saying that this kind of action will feed cynicism. Moreover, Loeb mentioned the psychologist Mary Pipher and her book The Shelter of Each Other, in which she states that junk values are taught by media and creating a self centered worldview of "ritual of consumption".

It will take time to teach people the benefit of teaching by example. I think that both groups are missing out on a fantastic way to share time with their own children. Community service could bring families together, sharing the enjoyment of helping others. In this process, our children would learn to share and not take everything they enjoy right now for granted. These children would have the opportunity to see less fortunate children and stimulate creativity finding more productive ways to solve social problems. It would also help them to become more sensitive future leaders.

Finally, the most important part is that the children can spend time with Mom and Dad, working for valuable causes. As Loeb quotes James Baldwin, "Children have never been very good at listening to their elders, but they have never failed to imitate them".

Make that extra step

I can see where the Stanford student is coming from. He wants his grandchildren to have the same extraordinary experience he had at this particular homeless shelter, not realizing that it is suggesting that the same shelter will be there in 60 years. Will this homeless shelter be affected by the help of the volunteers or will it all be the same for centuries? Will some people always be homeless? We can ask these questions, but we should not be helping without a cause. by volunteering, it assists to make a person's life better and out of their current situation, not just make it easier. Everyone can help around their church, be in Big Brothers Big Sisters, or just helping a sick friend; it is still considered community service. By doing these acts if kindness, it helps our society stay semi-sane and community-based.

I think Loeb stated the main point is the horrors and curses of our society circle to the next generations and it will not cease until "the development of powerful relationships with people who can give them the sense of being cared for that they've been previousy denied, and show them a different way to live". Not a lot of these homeless people of the streets have families, and if they do they may not even know where they are. These volunteers can provide those powerful relationships they long for and sense of security and calmness in their lives. You don't need help from government programs to heal a person emotionally. One person can make that extra step to help one person get off the streets by showing they care, and it can be a chain reaction. You don't know for sure, but it doesn't hurt to try.

I don't know if this movement will occur by the time my grandchildren are around, and have the ability to make a difference. But I surely hope that by their grandchildren, they will be saying 'can you believe that people used to have to sleep on the sidewalks?' People need to become sensitive again and put themselves in others' shoes. We have to realize that every single person can make a change towards something good in their life.

The Road to Self-Actualization

When I read Loeb's quote "Our most fundamental responsibility as citizens, is to love not only our own children, but other people's as well--including children we will never meet, who grow up in situations we'd prefer to ignore.", I had to physically take a step back and evaluate my own reaction to this quote before taking a look at other peoples' recations.

I think my very first reaction would compare to Jordan's (a few blogs below me) parents responses. "You have to help yourself before you can help others". This is a very true statement, however, how typical is it that I would think about myself first? I guess its an internal conflict for me. One part of me agrees entirely that helping others is my duty in life, while another part of me really wants to take care of me before devoting myself to others. So I guess I am a bit torn in between the two.

To my surprise, I am not the only one who is torn. A lot of people that I shared this quote with felt the same way, however, many believed that helping others is a way to help yourself because you grow from the experiences and eventually begin to "find" yourself in the process of giving to others.

I never considered this concept and realize that it might be the answer to all of my petty problems. (Petty, of course, compared to the problems that other people in the world face.) Through helping others in their time of need, I get to learn what issues really matter in life, and what issues are less important. In our society today, it's pretty easy to get the important and unimportant issues mixed up.

I'm grateful for this quote and exercise because it cleared up some confusion that I had about my future and it, in some ways, assured me that I am on the right path towards self-actualization.

The idea that Loeb presents in chapter 7 is not a brand new idea. It is something that has been used in many civilizations. We use it in our society, and so did the Soviet Union, what some would consider our opposite. Difference was that America keeps volunteering optional, Communism, not so much. The idea has been around so long because it is a beautiful, romantic idea that all humans should strive for. We all want to care for everyone else. We want to think we help others as much as we can. Not many people are pure evil like we think, where they would get joy from kicking a homeless orphan or some such nonsense like that. However, all it will ever be is a romantic idea, because it contradicts another powerful human motive, self-interest. We have an undeniable urge to improve our lives, morally and materialistically. These two motives are in constant struggle with each other in what has accumulated into the phrase "We have to help ourselves before we can help someone else". The basic definition of economics proves this more, by stating all economics is the process in which a society divides up its scarce resources, because there is not enough for everybody. So until we have technology that can create matter out of thin air, we will never reach a point where everyone will take care of everyone else and look out for one another. Some people may consider this pessimistic, I consider it realism.
This doesn't mean however we have no responsibility to help others. We are human, we are communal creatures. Our actions should be to always work towards the greater good of our race. There is a reason we have developed feelings like empathy When others like us fall on hard times, we feel the need to help them, because somewhere inside of us, we know its best for ourselves as well and our future. That is why we as a group are doing what we do.