Children
Justin Bieber, Purpose
“Never doubt that a small group of concerned citizens can change the world. Indeed it’s the only thing that ever has.” – Margaret Mead
In the beginning, Free The Children was little more than a small group of classmates eager to raise awareness about child labour. None of us had much experience with social justice work – just a desire to take action. Having discovered that children around the world were being forced to work in terrible conditions, toiling away day after day without the hope of going to school, we became determined to work toward change. While striving to free children from poverty and exploitation, we also sought to free our peers – and ourselves – from the idea that we were too young to make a meaningful difference in the world.
Wednesday October 12th, 2016 – I’m about half way through Craig Kielburger’s book (on the far right) and I’m really learning a lot about the world: about how unfair and cruel it can really be.
Reading books like this one really makes you be thankful and grateful for all the things you have and ontop of that having further thoughts of taking actions on all these kinds of issues included in this book and in the next book I’ll be reading after this one (Me To We, the one in the middle).
Craig Kielburger is really someone who I admire a lot. For all his work he’s created and achieved with his organization (Free The Children, now known as We). He is another great person I look up to as a role model.
“Water is life; the earth is life. We must not waste water; we must not destroy earth. The whole universe is one, and the creator of the universe is the one god who is almighty, who is merciful. We pray for wisdom and strength so that the entire world is like a family.” – Kailash
The thrills from reading these kinds of books really makes me feel something greater than some may think. Something powerful enough to change the world as much as one person can. It also gives me plenty of purpose in my life for myself! I’m proud and grateful for that!
Young people helping young people is what Free The Children is all about.
It was an honour to join these true heros – the hundreds of children taking great risks in fighting for their rights – as we marched through the Calcutta streets chanting, “Stop child labour!”
“As we walked back over the grassland to the jeep, I knew that Munnilal was the reason I had come to South Asia. He was the reason I believed so strongly in the cause of ending child labour. To know that change was possible, to know that a smile could again return to the face of a child who had been forced to work endless hours in hard labour – that was all the inspiration anyone could ever need. The children who laboured were the ones to teach the world a lesson in courage, not the brand-name sports stars, not the businessmen and their millions. These children are the real heros.” – Free The Children, Chapter 8, pg 135
Wednesday October 12th, 2016
I’ve finished reading chapter 10 of Free The Children and I’m really having so many inspiring, confident, powerful and uplifting thoughts and action plans and lessons and new knowledge gained from reading as far into the book as I am. This book is really giving me so many great and creative ideas and plans on how I plan to contribute my part in creating more healthier and better social change in human rights and all the rest.
“The poor will teach you many things.” – Mother Teresa
“It is estimated that there are 250 million children working in child servitude around the world. These children don’t have a chance for education, to live a normal life, even a chance to play.” – Craig
Thursday October 13th, 2016
Read chapter 11, 5 chapters to go. Learning more cruel, harsh and harmful things about the world. Only bring more thoughts to mind about making changes to create a better home for all humans on earth.
“We have gradually arrived at a different way of thinking and a diffent way of life that we like to call Me to Me. Me to We involves focusing less on “me” and more on “we” – our communities, our nation and our owrld as a whole. It is about living our lives as socially conscious and responsible people, engaging in family acts of kindness, building meaningful relationships and communities and considering the impact on “we” when making decisions. Basically, it represents a change in focus, a shift from the inside out.” – Preface, pg. 13
Friday October 14th, 2016
Read chapters 12, 13.
“Through our travels, our diverse experiences with social involvment, and the opportunity to meet and learn from some our greatest heroes, Marc and I have discovered the most surprising thing: in setting our to change the lives of others, our own lives have changed. In learning about the different people adn cultures that we have encountered, we have come to re-examine our most basic assumptions about the world nad our place in it, and emerged with a clearer understanding of what it takes to build a better world – and lead a fulfilling life.” – Preface, pg. 13
Saturday, October 15th, 2016
“People sometimes ask us how we maintain our optimism amid so many challenges – injustice and deprivation, the scourge of AIDS and the devastation of war. We respond that it is often in the midst of these horrors that we find the greatest virtue. We have seen teachers spending their own money to help at-risk students in inner-city schools, aid workers toiling to the point of exhaustion to help people in refugee camps and mediators risking their lives in war zones to secure peace.
In places plagued by hunger, suffering and despair we have seen people coming together to help one another, sharing what little they have, and celebrating the small pleasures allowed to them. Witnessing such extraordinary acts of courage, we have come to appreciate the importance of commmunity and caring, and to understand the true reaches of human potential.” – Preface, pg. 12–13
Sunday October 16th, 2016
Love this one, we all deserve love, belonging & affection, always! And I for one, deserve to be spoiled by myself and others! I’ve worked so hard on my long adventurous recovery, even recovering from my relapse, I deserve to be spoiled! To have fun, go to a party! I’ve never been to one except for two proms I attended in high school.
Finished reading the remaining 3 chapters.
“It has now been more than a decade since I first learned about the life adn death of child rights activist Iqbal Masih and embarked on Saturday journey that would forever change my life. It all started with one bold headline: “Battled child labour, boy, 12, murdered.” As a Grade 7 student from a middle class suburban neighbourhood, I was shocked to discover these words glaring back at me from the front page of the newspaper one morning. This, my first encounter with injustice as experienced by a child like myself, dramatically changed my ideas about the world. More importantly, it made me realise the world had to change.” – Preface, pg. 8
Monday October 17th, 2016
After reading this book (Free The Children by Craig Kielburger), I really had thoughts of all that I’ve learned from the book itself. How bad child labour really is and how it impacts millions of lives daily in developing countries.
Even at times throughout the book, I really gained even more inspiration and encouragements of achieving bigger goals with being such a huge fan and supporter of the organization and charity itself for I’ve had a passion for this type of work for about 6 years now also known as a huge part of my life purpose.
Ever since I heard about the earthquake in Haiti in 2010, I instantly wanted to learn about the country and so I did for my social studies project in grade 8. And it has grown ever since. That passion, need and crave that I feed on from this type of hype, really is something that I”m proud to be a part of and all that I benefit from doing this and everything in between.
Tuesday October 18th, 2016
Started reading the first couple chapters of “Me To We”!
Wednesday October 19th, 2016
Further reading with eyes glued to one page after another, only increasing her odds, wants, needs, dreams of creating better, positive, healthy and long lasting change in our world.
Thursday October 20th, 2016
Attending 2nd session of the “intro to mindfullness” group
Friday October 21st, 2016
Preparing more for my birthday celebration weekend: Laurapooloza
Saturday October 22nd 2016
Celebrating my 20th birthday with my bestie, Courtney, going out for dinner at The Keg
Sunday October 23rd, 2016
Celebrating 20th birthday with family!
