This reflection is by Adam James, a senior from Holmen, Wis.
A Brett Favre jersey, a Baltimore Ravens jersey and a "Proud to be an
American" T-shirt. This could have been any group of young men in any city
in the United States, only they weren’t in
our
country. These 23 men wearing donated clothes were in the toughest
slum in the capitol of the poorest country in our hemisphere, Haiti.
I don’t know any of their names. I don’t even speak their
language. However, I could see their drive and sense their hopes and
dreams. These men wanted to work and knew that they needed to learn how to
do something to have any hope of that or for a better life in a country with
an unemployment rate of 80 percent.
That is why they were here. They hoped Hands Together, our host
organization, would give them a scholar-ship to a vocational school.
They wanted to learn computers or cooling systems or any number of skills
and specialties that they each dreamed would help them achieve a better
life. They had a desire to learn and to work. I couldn’t help but wonder two
things among many.
First, do we have that desire? Sure,
we get up and go to work, however we complain because we don’t like our
job. We should give thanks for just having one to be able to go to and earn
enough to get by, and most of us earn more than enough to get by.
The second thing I wondered was whether there would be jobs for these
23 men to use their new found skills in and what might guarantee that
possibility? If I had the answer for that I would go and accept my Nobel
prize and there would be no more poverty in the world. I don’t have
that answer. I know that the most important thing I can do is pray for them
and try to do the best that I can for them.
Also, to respect their situation I will make a point to more appreciate what I have. I hope we all could do that.
