Monday, October 29, 2012

The Journey Starts Here

When I look at the drops of rain "backgrounding" my blog, I can only think of heaven-knows what potential lost in the sweat and toil of children in labor.

We do ourselves a disservice by allowing such horrors to pass beneath our eyes. The future is in me, the child, the billions of children who are the future citizens of the world. And yet -- how can we get to such a future when 215 million kids are in some sort of bonded labor. Uneducated, working day and night, walking miles for water and killing themselves for morsels of food - This is not the future.

I speak not from experience but from passion; I am the first to admit that I live a wealthy, comfortable life, rich with possibilities. My worries usually revolve around grades, tournaments, and competitions. Never have I struggled or even imagined struggling for a full belly or a roof over my head. Those were and are alien to the life I am so privileged to live.

I first ran into child labor when it glared out at me on the front page of the newspaper, drawing me in and playing on my confusion and disbelief. Shock and horror morphed into curiosity to learn more, knowledge that gave me the strength and certainty that I was going to do something about it. Sadly, one always faces some sort of brick wall in life, and this was mine. I sat helpless in frustration, constantly reading, talking, unable to contribute something meaningful. That's why I started this blog.

I am not the only one that is fighting for this cause. UNICEF, Free the Children, and India-based Childline are some of many organizations campaigning against child labor. I encourage everybody to donate, get educated, and spread awareness in the community. That's what I am trying to do - Join in and together we can make the world a better place.

Even the biggest trees were born from a tiny, humble seed. Even the biggest companies were born from a spark of an idea. I like to think of this blog as the start of my journey to make a difference in this world - My quest to give a child some hope, something tangible to hold onto, some opportunity.

Thank you. 

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