Sometimes in this world we get so
caught up in our own lives that we forget there is a whole world outside our
“bubble.” We become concerned about how our self-image looks and try to make
sure that all our wants and desires are met. Sometimes we like to compare
ourselves to our peers. We make sure we are “Up to par” with our fashion,
language, physical appearance, and gadgets. Too often do we tell ourselves that
we are deprived because we are not given certain privileges. Then there is that
someone (mom, dad, or friend) that reminds us that there are people in developing countries that can’t get even get close to our level of living.
What if
we stopped and thought about those people in developing countries.
Are we aware of all the hardships they have to go through? I would like to
refer to the photo above. Sebastiao Salgado took a pictures of migrants and refugees from all over the world and he captured the photograph above. These people are hitchhiking on top of a train in an attempt
travel to a new home. I asked myself what would motivate someone to leave one’s
home to travel on top of a moving freight train? Only someone that was truly
determined to find a better life. That person wanted a life like mine. He wanted
a life where he could eat until he had a full stomach every day. He wanted to live
where when he was hungry he would look in the fridge or the pantry. Though both
you and I can’t relate personally to any of these migrants’ hardships, we can
still help.
By creating awareness one can better understand their situation.
Often these migrants move because they were forced, lost everything or they were just looking for a better life. By identifying why one would be motivated to migrate,
we can start narrowing the problem. By finding the problem one can then look
for solutions. After finding a solution, we can then act. I would like to start
by spreading that awareness so we can eventually all find a way to act.
Work cited:
Salgado, Sebastião. 1998. Migrations: Humanity in Transition. New York: Aperture, 2000. 27. Print.
1 comment:
I agree it’s true that we forget how much we have in the U.S., and when we hear our parents or friends say, "remember the third world countries", all too often we roll our eyes and keep living as we have our whole lives: in excess. We don't search for anything better because we've got the best, and even though we have the best we don't always realize the enormity of that blessing. Realizing you think about yourself too much is the first step to recognizing other people’s struggles, and once you recognize those struggles you can attempt to alleviate their pain. Thank you for your insight, it made me think a bit more about how I perceive my life and the lives of others.
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