Thursday, October 30, 2008
Apathy
By Saundra Bunton
ApathyA fifth grader galvanized an entire community. A fifth grader.
In fifth grade most of us are ten or eleven years old. This child drafted a petition, gathered signatures, wrote her argument and convinced City Council to see things her way. (For complete details on this story see: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081029/ap_on_re_us/scared_town_s_halloween)
While the story is phenomenal and I am inspired by this young girl's motivation I am disheartened by what it indicates.
Her success simultaneously sheds light onto our failure. Healthy, mentally stable adults cannot petition their local Boards of Education for new computers, new books, better facilities for their own children. Strong, able-bodied adults are not inspired to volunteer to help others in local soup kitchens and clothing drives. Adults who have lived "successfully" their entire lives cannot pull themselves from in front of the television long enough to pursue their true dreams or challenge the status quo.
We are lazy.
This child saw what she wanted and saw that her goal was within her reach. What she accomplished was not difficult but it did require her to be steadfast and work hard. This is nothing more than what is required of any of us but somehow most of us find it impossible to give at this level. And I am not merely talking about giving for others but some of us cannot even give this type of dedication to our own selves, to our own interests and ideas and goals. Some of us quit before we've even begun.
Because of this we really can't complain when things don't go our way or when we never see our dreams actualized. We have sabotaged ourselves. We have acted as our own worst enemies simply because we failed to fight, even when we knew in our heart of hearts that it is worth fighting for. We simply rolled over and went back to sleep. And lived to dream emptily another day.
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2 comments:
Icouldn't agree more. I think though as adults we are afraid to take risk. We think we have tried everything we have in order to push our issues to the forefront. There is indeed apathy, which is the reason why these stories are important and it really solidifies the need to invest positively in our youth, because clearly they are NOT afraid!
When I was young I spent a lot of time drafting manifestos and wanting to petition something for a "redress of grievances." Youth affords a certain level of optimism that adulthood just doesn't. So, sometimes it's not about the amount of work it takes to do things or as a panelist from a voting event I attended last night referred to as "lazy and shifty" people, it may just be about hopelessness...which begets indifference...which begets apathy and lack of involvement.
I applaud young people pushing their ideas ahead when seeing the necessity for change. My biggest hope, though, is that the young are able to hold onto their level of involvement and brush off cynicism once they grow older.
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