Innocence

Jill and I (hmm…) were talking about the lack of volunteers to go to war refugees in a great time of need. People will flock to aid a hurricane or a tsunami. With the abundant and saddening amount of displaced people around the world I wonder if people realize the greatest number of displaced people is a result of war; in places like Sudan, the DRC, Sri Lanka, and Somalia, just to name a few, the need is great. I know there are many reasons not to go and help these people. But there are many reasons not to do a lot of things. I’ve found one very good reason to help. Children. Children are affected by this war it seems even more than the adult. With the horrors of becoming a child soldier, facing rape, and having any opportunity for education taken away from you in a moment, a child’s future in these war torn areas seems hopeless. I don’t have the answers. I know some people who would pick up and go to these places in a heartbeat. For others, it seems unfathomable. I think the biggest thing we need to do is talk about it. Talk about these children, because nobody can say it’s their fault, that they don’t deserve help. Then conversations around how you’re willing to help, how you’re able to help can happen. Maybe if we talk about it enough the right person will hear; the person who can do something. I’m all about action and deeds, but those actions need to start by getting a little fired up. Spreading awareness is as good an action as anything. So here’s a letter, written by parents in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo on behalf of the children of their country. This is just one country, but unfortunately their story is common.

http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2009/04/22/letter-parents-eastern-democratic-republic-congo-un-security-council

Austin and Koi

Jill and I made a day trip to Austin yesterday. It was a great decision and something we plan to do more often. We walked around SoCo (South Congress) which is like a bigger version of South Town (First Fridays) here in San Antonio. Some of the highlights are a huge candy store that sells chocolate covered bacon, an amazing antique store called Uncommon Objects, and a little grocery store called Farm to Market. I also got to show Jill 10,000 Villages, which is my favorite store of all time. It’s a non-profit, completely free trade store. You can learn about the artisans here: http://www.tenthousandvillages.com/catalog/artisan.php Everything there is beautiful. We met up with Layton at a great little coffee shop and had a great time talking and catching up with her. Then we ate at Mellow Mushroom which was delicious. It made me very nostalgic for our days playing Trivia there this summer. Ahhh the good ol days. Finally, Jill and I went to a bookstore Layton told me about called Book People. Book stores always make me happy : ) but it also made me decide that I have to start going to the library more, because I just can’t afford new books right now.

So along with Austin, tattoos have been filling my mind lately. Lexie, Leigh and I are going to all get Koi tattoos when I’m back in Georgia this summer. I’m going to get one like this, but with 3 Koi in a circle instead of just 2. I want all of them to be like the black one with accents of color that my sisters choose. I’m debating between 2 places right now. The first one is the top part of my right calf; on the back/side just below my knee. The other is on my left side right below armpit. I like that one because it’s close to my heart. But my other tattoo is behind my left ear… so my balance would be off… any suggestions or opinions?

Adios!

Oh my god, SHOES!

I’m sitting in my new amazing beautiful apartment! It’s just 2 blocks away from San Pedro Park, the second oldest park in the United States and my favorite place. I’m living here with Jill and Carly. They’re amazing, I wouldn’t be happier with my living situation. The three of us are also coming back for a second year with City Year. They asked me to be a team leader for McAuliffe next year! We also had our McAuliffe Legacy Project yesterday. We have these two huge murals designed by the city based off of all the ideas from the kids in after school at McAuliffe. It started pouring down rain during lunch so we didn’t get to finish the murals, but that just means that I get to paint murals all week :)

Jill told me about TOMS SHOES. http://www.tomsshoes.com/ you should all definitely check out the website. The shoes are pretty awesome and it’s an amazing cause. If you have any other opportunities like this, please pass them my way. I think these are my favorite shoes on their website.