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By Vaden Earle
The days seemed endless for Ben. The tin
roof over his head did nothing but magnify the mid-day heat. This time of
year, the sun in Southern Thailand is particularly intense.
Mix that with the humidity created by
having 350 people crammed into a metal warehouse, and a 14 hour day seems
like an eternity.
The constant hum of the sewing machines
combined with the flicker of the florescent lights seemed to keep everyone
bordering on the edge of complete insanity. The only thing that kept Ben
from slipping into a trance of monotony was the guaranteed beating that he
would receive if productivity were to suffer. Nobody likes a beating with a
rubber hose on the bare back. Especially when the wounds from the last one
are still fresh. Especially when you are nine years old.
Cluttered with minivans and soccer moms,
the mall parking lot is a buzz this beautiful Saturday morning. This
suburban destination is the setting for endless hours of commerce and
cut-throat lineups. It seems that capitalism, mixed with a healthy dose of
materialism, is alive and well.
With a freshly split marriage, Julie
knows that she needs to impress her nine year old son with the birthday
gift of his choice. Although she feels that 90 dollars is a bit much for a
soccer ball, this is the only one that he wants.
‘World Cup Edition’ accents the shiny,
multi-coloured, leather ball, right beneath the tiny ‘Made in
Thailand’ inscription. Perhaps it could more accurately say,
‘Made for children, by children.’
Somewhere, somehow, we must make a
decision. ‘Am I going to be a part of the solution or part of the
problem?’
In our words, we would say that all
people are created equal and deserve equal treatment. Meanwhile, in our
actions, we say the exact opposite: that we value Western life more than
that of developing nations. The ugly truth of Western culture is that we
lack global perspective: the perspective that sparks compassion and action.
It was 2003 when I finally ‘woke
up.’ I was reading a book called Be a
Hero by Wesley Campbell. He quotes the
following BBC news article about child trafficking that ruined my life
forever:
‘I would go to church and listen to
all the different ways that I could become ‘blessed’ and get
ahead in life. All of which seemed to be preached from a strictly
‘North American’ perspective. Was it true? Would God really
move mountains to get me a better job? More money? A better parking spot?
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What of Africa? Screw Africa! We would
never preach that message with our mouths, but we declare it from the
rooftops in our actions. Could I really serve a God that puts all of his
efforts into maintaining the comfort of only 5 percent of the world’s
population?’
I started to really pray . . . that was
when it hit me right between the eyes. Maybe living in a
‘blessed’ society comes with the obligation to help those in
the rest of the world.
Maybe I live here for a reason! Maybe I
should trade in my sense of entitlement for a sense of indebtedness to the
rest of the world. Is it not true?
We feel like we deserve clean water,
health care and education. In fact, we hold strikes and protests if our
convenience becomes even remotely threatened. The things that most of the
world consider a privilege, we have determined to be our right. A right
that we are willing to fight for.
Bono said it best: “Where we live
should not decide, whether we live, or whether we die.”
Maybe real faith is fighting for those
that do not have a voice. Maybe it is looking at people, not as a potential
‘convert,’ but as a brother or sister. Maybe it is owning their
suffering as if it were our own.
This article contains excerpts from Vaden’s
book, ‘ONE: A Face Behind the Numbers.’ To purchase ONE, or for
more information on Absolute Leadership Development, visit
www.absolute.org. Vaden Earle, along with his wife, Christal, is the
co-founder and CEO of Absolute Leadership Development Inc., which exists to
empower emerging generations to change their world by living their lives
with purpose. As well, Absolute is the parent organization for Hero
Holiday®, a humanitarian program that takes thousands of participants
to developing countries around the world, building schools, houses and
children’s homes.
Photos provided by Absolute Leadership
Options Spring 2008
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