Marie Antoinette lives in Alpine, Utah: A community the does so well that it doesn’t understand the complexities of an impoverished lifestyle. At least that’s how it seems to me, as a member of a high-school community where self-proclaimed “underprivileged children” beg for cell phones and cars, not food and shelter. I’ll admit that even though I seem to write smack about other high-school students, I, too, am capable of envy and greed despite having all of the luxuries of a successful lifestyle.
My favorite author, Victor Hugo, said this about his work: “I condemn slavery, I banish poverty, I teach ignorance, I treat disease, I lighten the night, and I hate hatred. That is what I am, and that is why I have written Les Misérables”. Exposure to poverty and cruelty is something Victor Hugo and I don’t have in common, but I would like to think that Victor Hugo and I have at least a common purpose. I, too, condemn slavery and banish poverty. That is what I am and that is why I’m writing this essay: To give the gift of awareness to my peers.
I recall being heartbroken in Paris, France. At every corner there was a beggar, often drunken, usually using the same tactic as the other beggar just around the corner. Occasionally they would be old men with long beards and thin jackets with small, starving puppies and a handful or less of dog food spread across a short blanket. Some of them were women who didn’t speak English and had their pleas written on a note-card, so tourists would understand what they were saying. At first I felt as if I was being tricked, but the more I thought about it the more I realized that even if I was being tricked, these people weren’t faking anything. They were simply starving to death.
This exposure to homelessness prompted me change my behavior. I left a coin for the old woman, kneeling outside of a cathedral as lines of people passed in and out. I dropped a pound into the hat of a toothless guitarist that played outside of an alleyway in Cambridge, England. I haven’t taken great strides in philanthropy, but being aware of the problem at least made me realize how easy my own life really is.
Even though I promote philanthropy, I don’t ask it. What I ask of the reader is to look around and become aware of the harsh realities that envelopes us. Maybe we could all try being a little more grateful to our parents, or ask for a little less and learn to appreciate what we already have, keeping in mind that so many people aren’t so fortunate.
A Gift I'd Like to Give (Rough draft)
I remember being five and six-years old, my mother would ask me every December what it was I wanted for Christmas; Mine and my brothers responses would come in lists. My mother would put out plain white paper, a few glue sticks and a collection of magazines that advertised all of the local Christmas sales. Me and my brothers would cut out the pictures of what we wanted to find under the tree on Christmas morning and glue them to the blank pages. When we were done decorating our lists and writing specific notes for certain items, we would give our lists to mother who would assure us that our Christmas lists would be delivered to the jolly old elf up north immediately. On Christmas morning we would find those same items decorated in boxes and bags in our stockings and under the tree, we would be delighted.
To us, back then, finding those items at Christmas was a miracle, but now that I grow older I've realized the gifts my parents gave to me weren't Gameboys and Bicycles, but something more meaningful; something less tangible. My parents gave me a gift I'd like to give.
Maybe some day I'll have a child of my own to raise and teach. If I do I hope I get to be a positive influence in my child's life, because I owe it to him or her. I could think of no gift greater to a child than happiness and a family that cares for their well-being, one like the family I grew up with.
Suppose I don't have a child of my own, I could be a philanthropist. I could feed the hungry, house the sick and befriend the friendless. My gift could be shelter, warmth or conversation. I could be a father to the fatherless. I seem to recall being in Paris and seeing the beggars and the homeless, and I remember my heart breaking. I know it's cliche and I'm aware that writers all around the world have written about beggars, but nobody deserves to live like that. The gift I'd like to give could make it so somebody doesn't have to.
The gift I'd like to give is personal awareness, the gift my mother and my father gave me. My own parents would gladly make any sacrifice to make us happy. When we're young it's hard to imagine something more worthwhile than money, but we seem to depreciate the value of awareness. I believe awareness is something that nobody wants to live without receiving, but most of all awareness is something nobody should live without giving.
To us, back then, finding those items at Christmas was a miracle, but now that I grow older I've realized the gifts my parents gave to me weren't Gameboys and Bicycles, but something more meaningful; something less tangible. My parents gave me a gift I'd like to give.
Maybe some day I'll have a child of my own to raise and teach. If I do I hope I get to be a positive influence in my child's life, because I owe it to him or her. I could think of no gift greater to a child than happiness and a family that cares for their well-being, one like the family I grew up with.
Suppose I don't have a child of my own, I could be a philanthropist. I could feed the hungry, house the sick and befriend the friendless. My gift could be shelter, warmth or conversation. I could be a father to the fatherless. I seem to recall being in Paris and seeing the beggars and the homeless, and I remember my heart breaking. I know it's cliche and I'm aware that writers all around the world have written about beggars, but nobody deserves to live like that. The gift I'd like to give could make it so somebody doesn't have to.
The gift I'd like to give is personal awareness, the gift my mother and my father gave me. My own parents would gladly make any sacrifice to make us happy. When we're young it's hard to imagine something more worthwhile than money, but we seem to depreciate the value of awareness. I believe awareness is something that nobody wants to live without receiving, but most of all awareness is something nobody should live without giving.
