Thursday, February 25, 2010

Finding inspiration

Sometimes when you're feeling disheartened; a little encouragement is all you need. Sometimes you find that bit of encouragement in the strangest of places...
Whilst sitting in a waiting room, paging through a jewelry catalogue I stumbled upon this quote:

"You never stand so tall as when you kneel to help a child."


What an awesome image and how true!

At LETCEE, all our work is about helping children is one way or another - sometimes it seems difficult, complicate or overwhelming...this quote came as a reminder and inspiration- we need to remember to stand tall, believing we are making a difference to the future!

Friday, February 19, 2010

What makes you smile??


There has been some discussion in the LETCEE office as to what are the kinds of things that happen during the day or week that make one stop and smile and give a sense of, "This is why I do what I do!" Working in the education sector and in communities one often gets wrapped up in all the challenges and the 'next step', that one can become very disheartened amongst all the difficulties.


So this discussion has made me stop and ask, what has happened in the last couple of weeks that has made me smile? This reminds me of the well known story of the starfish by Loren Eisley where there is a boy on the beach who is throwing starfish back into the sea to save them. A man asks him why he is doing it because he will never be able to save them all. The boy replies, "No, but I can make a difference for this one....and this one." He says this as he continues to throw the starfish one by one back in to the sea.


Many days I feel like the man who thinks that the boys' actions are futile BUT when you can help one family access healthcare, education, documents and provide support and see how the family is transformed, then I feel like the boy who says, "No I can't save them all, but I can make a difference to this one."


So one of the things that makes me smile is to stop and think about the individual lives that I have had the privilege of being a part of and where we have been able to facilitate some kind of positive change. I am reminded once again that it is not only about the large scale impact or number of people we are reaching BUT about the sustainable changes that affect the quality of life of individuals and families.

Something to ponder

As South Africa has just recently commerated 20 years since Nelson Mandela's release from prison and the huge changes that have occured in our country I began to reflect on what a privelege it is to be doing the work that I do. Just this week it struck me as I entered a home for a meeting how welcome I was in this home. I was there to observe and learn from a group of people very different to myself. I had nothing to offer except friendliness, respect, a smile and a willingness to learn. I began to realise that my generation and those who come after us are so privileged to be afforded these opportunities and how many of the older people who were severely affected by apartheid walk in a sense of forgiveness just as Mandela has done. We have plenty to learn from the elders in our communities, our own parents and grandparents and especially from those who have had a different life experience to the one that we have had.