poverty, perspective, and a surprising sense of peace as I re-acculturate
It’s been interesting processing my trip to Ethiopia over the past few days. Oftentimes people who have visited or served in developing areas will describe a process of re-acculturation, in which they resume their lives with a new lens. This phenomenon is usually accompanied by a series of revelations involving a renewed sense of gratitude, a changed perspective of the world, frustration with the excesses of American materialism, and a vow to make sweeping changes. I’ve done a . . .
the story of etensh
Yesterday was our first full day in Ethiopia. In the morning, we hopped on a bus that took us away from the bustling capital city of Addis Ababa and into the valley region near the river of Zeway. In this rural area, plagued by difficulty with soil and lack of crops, Food for the Hungry has identified over 1500 at-risk children to be in their program. These children are chosen by local community leaders, and some are placed in the Child-Headed Household program, which offers even more . . .
the personal gifts of sponsoring a child
Next week, I will be off to Ethiopia with Food for the Hungry to learn more about their child sponsorship programs. But before I go, I wanted to share about my own personal experience with child sponsorship, and why it’s something that we believe in. Mark and I have been sponsoring a child since before we had kids, but as we’ve added children to our family, we’ve added sponsored children as well. At this point, each of my kids have a child that is their designated pen-pal in . . .
a compassionate look at undocumented youth in the US
This video is six minutes long. I really hope you will take the time to watch it. It involves a series of interviews with undocumented kids, activists, policymakers, non-profit leaders, educators and members of the clergy. I realize that immigration reform is a hot-button political topic, but the issues this film raises are beyond partisan opinion. There is a social justice issue occurring in our country for kids who were brought here illegally. Their future is grim, and it’s . . .
africa-bound in less than two months!
I’m excited to officially announce that I will be traveling to Ethiopia this summer along with Food for the Hungry, an incredible aid organization that serves at-risk children all over the world. Food for the Hungry was founded in 1971, and they take a holistic approach to working with children within their communities. In fact, one of my favorite books on working with the poor, called When Helping Hurts, was written by a former Food for the Hungry employee. Partnering with . . .
where is the mommy-war for the motherless child?
If you watch the trends of media, whether it be print, internet, or tv, you’ve probably noticed that every couple of months there is a new version of the “mommy war” being played out. Last month’s battle du jour was surrounding moms who work vs. moms who stay at home. Today, a firestorm has ignited over a provocative photo and article in Time magazine about extended breastfeeding and attachment parenting. These manufactured mommy wars are predictable because they tend to provoke . . .
required reading on the killing of trayvon martin
Several weeks ago, I linked to the news story of Trayvon Martin in a post I wrote about racial ascriptions vs. descriptions. I was shocked by the story, but I tried to temper my outrage until I learned more. Honestly, a part of me didn’t mention it again because I was sincerely hoping that somehow details would emerge that would prove that there was more to the story than a neighborhood vigilante who thought that a black teen in a hoodie was suspicious enough to follow with a loaded gun. I . . .
white privilege and the impulse to help: some thoughts on #Kony2012
You’ve probably already seen links to the online film Kony 2012. The 30-minute documentary produced by Invisible Children has gone viral, and #KONY2012 has been trending on twitter for days. Of course, as with anything that garners immediate and national publicity, there has been some criticism as well. Several people have asked for my thoughts on the matter, and I thought I’d weigh in. But first, here’s the video. You really should watch it if you haven’t yet. . . .
would open borders help solve the problem of global poverty?
Today I was reading an article in the Mennonite Review that quoted a post of mine about the orphan crisis in Haiti. The author suggested that more people should consider moving to impoverished countries to serve. It was a great piece, but I was really fascinated with a comment to the post, and thought I would share it here for discussion. What you are pointing out, though not intentionally, is a fascinating economic truth. I've advocated open borders for (at least) oppressed and . . .
how to talk to kids about race and racism
Last week I expressed some concern about whether or not my first-grader was old enough to be learning about some of the more violent aspects of the civil rights movement and slavery. One of the frustrating outcomes of that conversation is that a few people misinterpreted my concern as being over conversations about race in general . . . which couldn’t be further from the truth. I am a firm believer that we should be talking to our kids about racial differences from a very young age. . . .
- Newer Posts
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- Older Posts