Redemption

I'm back! I'm back from a crazy quick trip to New York where I crammed in as much NY as I could and I've recovered from the exhaustion that came with doing that. This week I will definitely be blogging more than last week, but today, I wanted to share with you a really special story.

Remember about 2 weeks ago when I wrote about my blog world being shattered? Well, there has been a bit of redemption. And funny enough, the topic of one of the blogs that has redeemed my faith in the blogging world is redemption.

Yesterday as I read some of my favorite blogs, this post from Emily at The Real Life Housewife of Ciudad Juarez really hit home for me. She wrote about her father and how he has become inspirational to her despite the fact that he was absent from much of her life because of drugs and alcohol. While his story is incredibly inspiring, what hit me was his message.

 

A couple of weeks ago when I read the hatred that spewed from many women's fingertips and into their computers, the point I wanted them all to see about poverty was that it is a cycle. In the video, Emily's father, Michael, talks over and over again about how poverty becomes part of one's psychology and how the only way to get someone out of the cycle is to change their psychology. 

He says that the very way we try to help the poor is flawed. We throw money at them and expect that they will change. And when they don't, politicians say "See, you're wasting your money on these people." But what Michael says is that we need to change the way we help others. He says, "There is a cycle of poverty. You can get out, but you have to do certain things. We can't donate you out of it."

And as I've said a number of times before, and Michael agrees, the way to get out is education. I've dedicated my career to helping the less fortunate find opportunities for education. Someday maybe I'll write more about the jobs I've had and how I've tried to contribute to changing the cycle of poverty. 

But for now, enjoy the video about The Accidental Missionary and his story of redemption. It's nice to know that no matter where you've begun, you can always end in a more positive place.