This past week, I was fortunate enough to visit family in the Dominican Republic. For those of you who don't know, I am first generation American - Dominican. Dominican Republic is an amazing island with a huge heart. Although, it is still a third world country with great poverty, it is full of diversity, and immensely talented and motivated individuals. Many of my family members made their way here to the United States in search for greater opportunities not available in Dominican Republic. They worked tirelessly to make a better life for their children. They made sure we remained close to one another and instilled the importance of family values. Two of the many sages in our family are my Aunt Angelita (89 yrs. old) & Uncle Julian (90 yrs old). They've been married for 63 years and are still as loving and affectionate as in their younger years. After making their way here to the US, they decided to go back to their home. Dominican Republic. They give back to their community and even help some of the poorer neighborhood kids receive a college education. They believe in the power of the individual to make a difference.
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Here, in the states, it can be so easy for us to get caught up in the trivial moments. We tend to get a myopic view of the work, work, work adage. We loose touch with the true importance of family and community. We have a responsibility to ourselves and others to make this life count by giving back and cultivating seeds that will sprout love & change. Now, is the time to follow our hearts and build a life for ourselves that will leave a lasting impression on the hearts of all those we encounter.
Just beautiful, well said!
ReplyDeleteVery beautiful, thanks for sharing...
ReplyDeleteI am inspired again, this made my week
I am jealous. Wish I could have been there too:)
ReplyDeleteMarissa (www.dsenyo.com)
Reading this brought tears to my eyes. I believe that those of us who have been blessed with being able to live in this country of ours, where everything can be obtained, and the word impossible seems to have disappeared from our vocabulary, have the responsibility to give back to those less fortunate. People in third world countries need our help.
ReplyDeleteThe people in the Dominican Republic is good hearted, humble and despite their limited financial resources, they still have the eagerness to learn and achieve a better life.
Unfortunatelly, not all have the privilege of attending a college or university, but like Tio Julian and tia Angelita, we too can help a child achieve his/her dream of obtaining a better life. Here in the USA we have so much and we do not realize it - we take everything for granted. Abundance makes us blind and we do not see the needs of others.
Great article! Keep sharing with us, perhaps through your writing we too can wake up and feel the pain of those less fortunate and decide to do something about it.
Ramona
Reading this article brought tears to my eyes. I too believe that those of us who have been blessed with being able to live in this country of ours, where everything can be achieved, where the word "impossible" seems to have disappeared from our vocabulary, we have the responsibility to give back to those less fortunate. We tend to take our good fortune for granted, and do not realize that the people in third world countries need our help.
ReplyDeleteThe people in the Dominican Republic is good hearted and humble and despite their limited or lack of financial resources, they still dream of achieving a better life for their children and their elderly. We can help. Here, in this blessed country of ours everything is abundantly available, but we tend to take it for granted. Abundance makes us blind to the suffering and needs of others. Just like tia Angelita and Tio Julian, we can change the world one person at a time. Why not start now?
This is a great article! Keep sharing your passion and love for those less fortunate, and who knows, maybe we too can feel the pain of those in need and take some action about changing the world one person at a time!
Thank you!