Curing the Hollowness of the Unkind

What if we changed history? What if we went back in time and made the founding fathers of America into brutal and vicious self interested dictators? Today, I would not be at my laptop I would not be sitting at the comfort of my home but rather I’d be a 22 year old that has already lived half her life seeing war and death amongst the sorrow of her country.

I create this scenario not because I’m crazy but I’d like you to see yourself for a second in that world. What if you were that child in Beth Ann’s picture holding a gun? Who would you become under corrupt governance? These are only questions that we can explore and discuss further but in reality you are still who you are sitting where you are and you won’t be drastically changing to that degree. However, I believe the reason we do not connect with those ‘others’ in the world who may not be in sight of us is due to this concept of “encountering the other”. We do not care nor do we empathize with those who we do not know. So it comes to be a difficult case of curing the hollowness of the unkind.

Question-Action-Shape-Inspire

Millions out there are writing and conceptualizing theories on how to better the world. Those same individuals are looking at some of these statistics to drive their theories;

“Besides lack of appropriate health care and nutrition, HIV/AIDS is a major health issue in Africa. Due to sufficient educational programs and financial resources, the number of HIV/AIDS cases has risen to tragic heights in Africa. In some countries, such as Zambia and Botswana, 20% or more of the adult population is believed to be infected with HIV. Tragically, the children of Africa suffer the most from this epidemic. Millions of children have been left orphaned because of the disease. ” –Africa Cultural Center

“With the highest birthrate of any continent, Africa is projected to grow to two billion by 2050. Women in sub-Saharan Africa bear an average of 6 children each. Life expectancy is low (Sierra Leone: 34 years, Zambia: 37 years, other countries: 40–49 years) compared to the developed countries.”-Africa Cultural Center

I’m not here to make up another theory on how to solve these problems nor do I have the knowledge to make any significant change but I am here to offer some friendly action steps. First, ask questions of things you don’t know about. For example, with our blog every week we choose a theme, this theme may be something that some of us know nothing about but it drives us to research and learn something new. This past week I have continuously read articles and learned new facts. Second, take action join an organization you don’t necessarily need to travel across the ocean to help out, you can help from here see what you can do locally to help out. Third, after taking action and signing up it’s important to stay persistent with your work meaning see how you can make something out of the knowledge you have gained and the work that you have done. At this point you may be ready to do something on your own. Remember that you may start with so little but you may gain so much and through this advancement of knowledge and experience you may be capable to inspire others to do something as well. Finally, be proud of the work that you do  and educate others about the various issues and disparities going on in Africa. You may find this to be very simple and something very easy to come up with but the important question is can you put it in action?