Inspiration Station
I read this post over at The Shine Project this morning and was absolutely blown away by it. Not only is she doing amazing things by working to raise money for scholarships, she's also such a giving heart to be there for kids in need at all times. This is the kind of person I hope I am to the youth in my life.
I read some of the comments and was a little disheartened that they didn't say what I was thinking: how can I help? They praised her giving heart, her work, her vision, her soul, her drive, and her abilities. But no one before or after me asked if they can help buy a bus pass for this kid. It was the first thought in my mind: how much are these passes and how can I help pay for one? But am I the only one who thought that?
It got me thinking about Evgeny Morozov and his discussions about 'slactivism' (see here, here, here, here, and here). Have we become a society of slactivists? Are we only interested in telling the world that we care about an issue as opposed to taking action? I know we're not all flush with money (trust me...being unemployed for 6 months really shows you what you can and can't live without), but isn't helping others about sacrifice, too? Do you really need to eat steak for dinner this week or can you have pasta and take the $20 you'd have spent on steak and help someone else eat their first meal of the day/week?
I am a role model. We are all role models whether we want to be or not. I work with the youth in my church and pray that I am a good model for how they want to be when they grow up. Do I make mistakes? Yes, often. But do I let that stand in my way of trying to better myself? No. I keep plugging along and try to find ways to fix the mistakes I made and create a better life for myself and love those around me.
I challenge you today to make a sacrifice and donate the profits to The Shine Project. I will be sacrificing half my food budget for this week to donate $27.50 which is the amount of one month's bus pass for a child in her school system. I'm making the sacrifice because I can; because I think it's necessary. I hope you find it necessary too. (You can send paypal payments to: ashley.theshineproject@gmail.com.)
I read some of the comments and was a little disheartened that they didn't say what I was thinking: how can I help? They praised her giving heart, her work, her vision, her soul, her drive, and her abilities. But no one before or after me asked if they can help buy a bus pass for this kid. It was the first thought in my mind: how much are these passes and how can I help pay for one? But am I the only one who thought that?
I am a role model. We are all role models whether we want to be or not. I work with the youth in my church and pray that I am a good model for how they want to be when they grow up. Do I make mistakes? Yes, often. But do I let that stand in my way of trying to better myself? No. I keep plugging along and try to find ways to fix the mistakes I made and create a better life for myself and love those around me.
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