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Wednesday, April 9, 2008

A Higher Purpose?

Ok so I was going to post about my garden, my new obession and all the quirky pieces of broken antique furniture I keep adding the landscape...but in the grand scheme of the thought that has been running through my head it just seems very trivial.
So instead I shall spill out, or spell out, as it may be, a thought that is haunting me terribly lately. What am I doing to create change?
I watched this documentary HBO special last night about the millions of women in the Congo of Africa who have been raped and mutilated amidst a bloody civil war. A war perpetrated by wealthy white men in order to distract from the fact that they are raping the land of oil, gold, silver, diamonds and coltan a metal used specifically for the production of cell phones and laptops, found almost exclusively in this area of the world.

And the victims of this war are not men, yes there are casualties, but the real victims are women, of all ages, from 2yrs to 94yrs. Being brutally gang raped, and mutilated with guns, knives, sticks and other foreign objects. Mutilated to the point that their bladders, uteruses and colons are destroyed. And since sexual violence is very taboo in this country, women are abandoned by their husbands and families after their attack. They are shunned from their communities and are left to survive in the brush until they can make it to one of the various ’rape centers’ in the Congo. Often times travelling for months to arrive. There are doctors who are trying to their best to repair these women physically, but there is little that can be done to repair them mentally. As I watched this I wanted to do something so bad. I felt called to help. And if I had no husband or children you can bet this very minute I would not be blogging on MySpace, I would be finding a place that I could volunteer my services and trying to find transportation to the war zone.

I feel like there is a higher purpose for me. I truly do. But my duty right now is to raise my children, I know this. Perhaps my higher purpose is to raise children who will be the peacekeepers and the volunteers. Perhaps once they are grown I will be able to join them in the global fight for civil rights. I just felt so helpless and useless watching that last night. And I get so disgusted when I hear some ignorant American say "we need to worry about our own..." why must we choose who we worry about? Why can’t their be a global effort to help ALL mankind.
I have the answer. Because we don’t want to sacrifice convenience. Our cell phones, our laptops, our gawdy diamond engagement rings, our gold tennis bracelets and our gas guzzling SUV’s. And yes I own an SUV....the irony of how many people must suffer, with their lives for the sake of our modern conveniences. It’s makes me feel like a monster. I want to leave a mark in this world that provided some kind of change for the better. If I could take even just one of these girls under my wing and into my home and show them the true value of being a woman, a giver of life...but the looks in their eyes were so lost and distant. These women will never be the same. And they will never be accepted in their own culture.

If you are interested here is an L.A. Times report on the show I watched last night.

http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/tv/la-et-congo8apr08,1,7028798.story

3 comments:

Shannon said...

I often feel hopeless when I hear of the horrible things people sustain - for any reason. I would love to save the world, but I don't think anyone can save mankind from itself (correct pronoun?). It's just sad how things get worse all the time. At least when wars were fought way back when, they were at times for survival rather than the conveniences you talk of and we hear about today. *BIG SIGH*

Mum-me said...

I know how feel when you say you wish you could do something, but you have to consider your family. I've had similar frustrations. A good and wise friend reminded me that we all have 'seasons' in our lives. This is our 'season' to care for our families. I'm sure we'll both get our 'season' to do something tangible to help make this world a better place. In the meantime, we have to educate our children to respect all human life over and above money. { stepping down from my soapbox now ;-) }

Liz said...

You know what, you can help! The next time you want a new cell phone, wait 6 months. The next time you want a new laptop (if you have one) upgrade the one you already have. And yes, raise your children to be peacemakers! We can make a difference - even though it may be a small one. But think about it, if even 100 people make a small difference, it will really add up.