It's the day before the fourth Thursday in November, and I have been asked to tell what I am thankful for. I could submit my thanks on Thursday at 11:59:52, which would be cutting it dangerously close. I could try and submit it on Friday at 12:01, under the assumption of "better late than never," though I know that is not the best idea. Yet, I am choosing to publicize my thankfulness, on the eve of this Thursday, at a decent hour. I am ready to let the world know now.
This past summer, I encountered an interesting situation. It happened when I was sitting high in the white, wooden stand of superiority, guarding the lives of those who swim in the quarry. It was not a busy day, a muggy Monday. There were three people wading and washing away beads of sweat. The water was a tempting sparkle of relief which lured me and the other lifeguard to take turns diving in, experiencing a sort of baptismal tranquility. I had just finished a deli sandwich: turkey, lettuce, tomato, honey mustard, and pickles on a kaiser roll. My stomach was slightly full, but I had an urge to stand at least waist deep in the water. I looked down at the view, three middle aged adults still wading. I looked on the beach.
A bronze colored child in a shiny turquoise one-piece came hurriedly hobbling towards the stand. I scrambled down the stand, as quickly as my arms and legs would allow, and met the hobbling child halfway. Her dark eyes were wide and almost saddened as I tried to figure out the problem. She's conscious. She's breathing. Breathing means a pulse. She's not bleeding. She's not crying. She's just staring. "Are you okay? What's wrong honey?" She stares, but begins
to move her arms, which move her hands to her throat. Hands clenched around throat.
Universal sign for choking. Oh god. Our father who art in heaven... No. Stop. Check for an obstructed airway. God. Oh please. DAMNIT! My first month, week, of life guarding and a little girl is choking.
"Are you choking?"
"No hablo... no hablo.."
She doesn't speak English. Oh. Well. This could complicate things.
"¿Qué pasa?!" I collect from my head.
"Yo necesito agua."
"Oh, good! Bueno. Bueno. Bueno."
"Yo tengo agua." I have water. I have water!
It was as simple as that. She was thirsty. She needed water. I climbed up the stand, more slowly this time, and came back down with a water bottle. She grasped the plastic gift and gulped down the water.
Patience is something that is required of a lifeguard. There is a lot of time to fill, and this is where an overexcited mind can go to work. I have plenty of time to think. Later that day, sitting in my place of waterfront hierarchy, I came to a realization. Communication is one of the most valuable things. This is why I strive to be tri-lingual, perhaps quad-lingual some day. I do not want language to keep me from communicating with and understanding others.
I am thankful for language and the act of communicating.
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
Sunday, November 11, 2007
The Cycle of Poverty: Mind-set v. Inability
Poverty is defined by the individual. One in the social upper class, attending ritzy functions uptown, in Manhattan, might consider a blue collar worker close to poverty. A hardworking, single mother of four, working fifty hour weeks (struggling to find a can of soup for dinner), might feel bad for those living two blocks down, without a cardboard box to call their own. One on the streets, digging through waste receptacles and eyeing potential treasures, might pray for the poverty stricken children of Africa. According to Merriam Webster's Dictionary, poverty is defined as "the state of one who lacks a usual or socially acceptable amount of money or material possession." This statement is general and not slanted. It is not placing ignorant blame or pointing a lard containing finger. No, this definition leaves the rest up to the critics.
There is an awful Cycle of Poverty which many people fall into. A socially-economic struggling mother gives birth to two children. These children grow up and live through the horrors of poverty. Education is lacking--children are bullied because of poverty and do not look forward to school. Nutrition is not necessary--the next night's dinner is of more concern. Health care is hard to afford. Everything essential for development is scarce, causing traumatic effects on the neurological development of children. This includes: reduction in cognitive control, memory, working memory, and language. This does not include: psychological effects. This makes a successful future a difficult destination. Mortality increases. Life expectancy decreases.
If a child grows up poor, he or she is far more likely to fall into the evil Cycle of Poverty.
It is not hard to follow the mistakes of a parent, or live with the result of those mistakes. The
outcome is often a result of mind-set or inability. This should be carefully analyzed.
In many cases, mind-set is what keeps a person from digging out of the treacherously deep hole of poverty. As seen in The Glass Castle, a memoir written by Jeannette Walls, some choose to stay in poverty. Jeannette's parents did not strive to get their children out of poverty. It was an adventure to move nomadically from state to state, in search of work or food or alcohol or patrons of art. Rex and Rosemary Walls did not do much to change their way of living.
Inability results primarily from a disorder, disease, or disability. Physical handi-caps often prevent a person from finding a decent job. A sickness in a family can sweep funds out of a bank account. Psychological disorders, such as Rosemary's depression and assumed bi-polar disorder, can dramatically inable a person. Addiction, such as Rex's alcoholism disease, slows down any
process of escaping poverty.
Although both inabilty and mind-set are immensely debatable, it is easy to make a distinction between the two. If one does not have physical or psychological issues, it is because of mind-set that one remains in poverty. Those people who are collecting welfare, leisurely awaiting a check and doing nothing else (not all do so), are at fault. One, with no inabilities, is capable of avoiding the Cycle of Poverty if the effort is put forth. Many children understand that there is a better world. It is the motivation to live in this world that helps many of them succeed, possibly granting an entrance into college on a full scholarship. Others do not have the means to escape, such as children in Darfur, and are trapped. If the resources to eliminate poverty for a person are available and there is no inability, mind-set is the only factor holding them back.
There is an awful Cycle of Poverty which many people fall into. A socially-economic struggling mother gives birth to two children. These children grow up and live through the horrors of poverty. Education is lacking--children are bullied because of poverty and do not look forward to school. Nutrition is not necessary--the next night's dinner is of more concern. Health care is hard to afford. Everything essential for development is scarce, causing traumatic effects on the neurological development of children. This includes: reduction in cognitive control, memory, working memory, and language. This does not include: psychological effects. This makes a successful future a difficult destination. Mortality increases. Life expectancy decreases.
If a child grows up poor, he or she is far more likely to fall into the evil Cycle of Poverty.
It is not hard to follow the mistakes of a parent, or live with the result of those mistakes. The
outcome is often a result of mind-set or inability. This should be carefully analyzed.
In many cases, mind-set is what keeps a person from digging out of the treacherously deep hole of poverty. As seen in The Glass Castle, a memoir written by Jeannette Walls, some choose to stay in poverty. Jeannette's parents did not strive to get their children out of poverty. It was an adventure to move nomadically from state to state, in search of work or food or alcohol or patrons of art. Rex and Rosemary Walls did not do much to change their way of living.
Inability results primarily from a disorder, disease, or disability. Physical handi-caps often prevent a person from finding a decent job. A sickness in a family can sweep funds out of a bank account. Psychological disorders, such as Rosemary's depression and assumed bi-polar disorder, can dramatically inable a person. Addiction, such as Rex's alcoholism disease, slows down any
process of escaping poverty.
Although both inabilty and mind-set are immensely debatable, it is easy to make a distinction between the two. If one does not have physical or psychological issues, it is because of mind-set that one remains in poverty. Those people who are collecting welfare, leisurely awaiting a check and doing nothing else (not all do so), are at fault. One, with no inabilities, is capable of avoiding the Cycle of Poverty if the effort is put forth. Many children understand that there is a better world. It is the motivation to live in this world that helps many of them succeed, possibly granting an entrance into college on a full scholarship. Others do not have the means to escape, such as children in Darfur, and are trapped. If the resources to eliminate poverty for a person are available and there is no inability, mind-set is the only factor holding them back.
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