Thirst in Life

Not having any plans tonight and not really wanting to do any real work, I proceeded to read the book Freedom Writers by Erin Gruwell. The book is actually a collection of real diaries that the students and herself wrote while she was a teacher at Wilson High School in Long Beach, California. I saw the movie a while back on an international plane flight and really enjoyed it. When I saw it at Half Price Books the other day, I immediately jumped on purchasing it.

Reading it turned out to be more moving for me than watching the movie. Perhaps the environment of being alone in a quiet room also helps. Somehow, the words, perhaps because of their simplicity and frankness, drew me in and captivated me in the world that these racially discriminated or ghetto kids had to endure while supposedly trying to get an education at school. How one woman transformed their lives by treating them as real people and going beyond existing stereotypes that they're stupid or hopeless is amazing.

Erin Gruwell is a definite hero; she had faith in their potential and inspired her students to share that faith as well. She established a foundation after she became famous to continue to help and inspire students and overcome whatever their circumstances may be through acceptance and innovative teaching methods. The website is http://www.freedomwritersfoundation.org/

Reading this book has put me in a very pensive mood. I feel like I ought to do something as well. Sure, I'm busy running around doing various projects and school but I also feel like I'm obligated to help out the community as well. In the book, most of the other teachers just ignored the issue. They felt that these black, Latino, and Asian kids growing up in these terrible neighborhoods were hopeless. I need to ask myself this question:

As someone who claims to care about the world and others am I doing the same thing? In other words, am I ignoring people around me that ought to be helped? Am I as tolerant as I think I am?

I will look up some volunteering around the community and see what I can do to lead a more fulfilling life helping others. Helping myself by career advancement and business is always good but I have always felt that there's something missing. A thirst in life that has left unquenched regardless of reading spiritual books or talking to people about it. Perhaps reading this is a wake up call to do more than just personal reflection once in a while. I'll keep posted on what I end up doing.