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Recovering backpacker, Cornwallite at heart, political enthusiast, catalyst, writer, husband, father, community volunteer, unabashedly proud Canadian. Every hyperlink connects to something related directly or thematically to that which is highlighted.

Thursday 31 May 2012

We Can Do Better - and We Will





- Attributed to Edmund Burke



- Elie Wiesel


- Adalbert Lallier

Look at this picture.  Don't shy away from it.  Look at those three young faces that will never become old faces, nor ever have the chance to look back.

It's pretty horrifying, isn't it? 

What do those vacant eyes that should be full of promise make you want to do?  Scream, run, cry, hurt someone?

Embrace that feeling.  Let it wash over you.  Now - harness it.  That raw emotion will give you resolve - your challenge is not to lose the thread, nor to let that feeling churn helplessly in rage.

Too often we see problems as insurmountable.  Saying the world is just evil is a cop out - it removes power and responsibility from your hands. 

Too often we justify inaction based on an unwillingness to face our own limitations.  Allowing problems to fester only makes them worse; denying responsibility doesn't remove guilt.

Too often we lash out, becoming part of the problem instead of seeking solutions.  Lobbing our missiles their way, we only produce more corpses that look exactly the same.



There's only one way forward, and that's to own up to our responsibility to society, both here and abroad.  If that means sacrificing a little comfort, so be it.  If that means challenging your own views, then do it.  If it means engaging your enemy over debate rather than the sword, do that too.

Get informed.

Get engaged.

Patience, persistence.

Maintain resolve; maintain morale.

Make the difference.

If we don't, we are simply condemning our children to repeat our mistakes.



 - Balian, The Kingdom of Heaven


UPDATE September 4, 2015

We will do better... but clearly, not yet.

2 comments:

  1. beautiful, craig. very inspiring.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thank you! I have a picture on my wall of my grandfather and grandson laying a rose on the commemorative plaque at Buchenwald, which my grandpa survived. It serves as my reminder that giving up is not an option. http://www.thememoryproject.com/stories/490:edward-carter-edwards/

    Having said that, there's a lot of work to do.

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