On October 2nd of 2014 I was so blessed to have been able to attend my very first We Day. Going into the day my expectations were I'd be hearing speakers talk about how my generation needs to care more about world issues and get more involved because we're below expectable as well as great performances from Hedley, Neverest, Karl Wolf, Kardinal Offishall, Kendrick Lamar, Joe Jonas, R5, and Lights. My only expectation that was correct was about the performances being great. We Day is based off of the movement of "Me to We" which was created by "Free the Children". The day was not a day of shaming our generation, it was a day full of bringing our generation up and showing the positive impact we've had on the local and global community. Creig Keilburger himself expressed the view many people have of our generation "slacktivists", selfie obsessed, and lazy and discarded these stereotypes. He stated it's because of our generation that 45 Million dollars was raised for more then 1 thousand global and local causes. It is our generation who donated 14.6 Million hours of their time to volunteering for worthy local and global causes. It is because of the action and drive within our generation that allowed 2.5 million young people to have taken part in a Free the Children Campaign. That doesn't look like slacktivism to me.
Empowerment was the very prevalent idea of We Day 2014, empowering us to be changers within the local and global community, and how other individuals have been empowered by the work of Free the Children. I consider myself to be an empowered individual, I am fortunate to live in Canada a country in which I am relatively safe and my rights are protected, I have opportunity to extend my education past high school, and I am able to execute my goals and dreams. Even with these luxuries there are moments in which I feel weak. When a am belittled, bullied, or disrespected my sense of empowerment escapes me. We Day taught me how I can get my empowerment and self work back in my hands. Through empowering individuals in my community through both large and small positive deeds, I develop my own self worth and I feel empowered through being able to empower others.
I have countless great memories from We Day and many speakers who's messages are now living in my heart but there are a few I would like to share with you. A quote spoken by the director of RBC (her name has unfortunately slipped my mind) has really stuck with me. While speaking on the topic of economic empowerment she said "It's nice to be important, but it's more important to be nice." This has resonated within me for these post We Day days. It is human nature to want to be recognized and given glory for our actions, we feed off validation. Although validation gives temporary happiness and satisfaction, it does not fill the void of the lack of joy that is innate within all of us. That void is filled through giving to others.
Col. Chris Hadfield (a well known Canadian astronaut) said a profound statement when speaking on the topic of technological empowerment. "The sky is not the limit, it is the threshold to the stars." This does not only speak for the possibilities for technology, this speaks to the possibilities of us as individuals. We should not put ourselves in a box in terms of what we can accomplish in world change or even our own personal success. As a person who greatly appreciates astronomy this quote personally means a lot to me.
Ashley Rose Murphy is the definition of empowerment. She is a Free The Children volunteer, HIV activist, and motivational speaker. Her story will remain in my heart for years to come. There isn't just one thing I grasped from her story, I have so many takeaways. I do not want to reinterpret the story she told because there is no way I can phrase it as eloquently as she did, so I will be embedding the YouTube video of it.
Empowerment was the very prevalent idea of We Day 2014, empowering us to be changers within the local and global community, and how other individuals have been empowered by the work of Free the Children. I consider myself to be an empowered individual, I am fortunate to live in Canada a country in which I am relatively safe and my rights are protected, I have opportunity to extend my education past high school, and I am able to execute my goals and dreams. Even with these luxuries there are moments in which I feel weak. When a am belittled, bullied, or disrespected my sense of empowerment escapes me. We Day taught me how I can get my empowerment and self work back in my hands. Through empowering individuals in my community through both large and small positive deeds, I develop my own self worth and I feel empowered through being able to empower others.
I have countless great memories from We Day and many speakers who's messages are now living in my heart but there are a few I would like to share with you. A quote spoken by the director of RBC (her name has unfortunately slipped my mind) has really stuck with me. While speaking on the topic of economic empowerment she said "It's nice to be important, but it's more important to be nice." This has resonated within me for these post We Day days. It is human nature to want to be recognized and given glory for our actions, we feed off validation. Although validation gives temporary happiness and satisfaction, it does not fill the void of the lack of joy that is innate within all of us. That void is filled through giving to others.
Col. Chris Hadfield (a well known Canadian astronaut) said a profound statement when speaking on the topic of technological empowerment. "The sky is not the limit, it is the threshold to the stars." This does not only speak for the possibilities for technology, this speaks to the possibilities of us as individuals. We should not put ourselves in a box in terms of what we can accomplish in world change or even our own personal success. As a person who greatly appreciates astronomy this quote personally means a lot to me.
Ashley Rose Murphy is the definition of empowerment. She is a Free The Children volunteer, HIV activist, and motivational speaker. Her story will remain in my heart for years to come. There isn't just one thing I grasped from her story, I have so many takeaways. I do not want to reinterpret the story she told because there is no way I can phrase it as eloquently as she did, so I will be embedding the YouTube video of it.
The takeaway I want to apply most in my life is not to let my weaknesses limit or define me, but rather to let them empower me and use them to empower others the way Ashley has done and continues to do in her own life. I am of the black race and many people see that as a weakness. They see that as something I should use as a cop out or an execute to get away things. They try and use racism and negative stereotypes to put limitations on me. Sometimes I give into these tricks, but thanks to the motivation of Ashley I will no longer let people use my race as a weakness and to any black person who I encounter who is facing this issue I will be the one to motivate them and lift them up. I want to applaud Ashley again for her bravery in sharing such a personal matter with the world and for teaching us all a very valuable lesson. I also want to personally thank Ashley for responding to my tweet today and following me on twitter, I would be lying if I said I didn't fangirl. To any and everyone who is battling a "weakness" whether that be mental illness, bullying, self hate, cancer, or exclusion use these things to empower others who are facing the same issues because it will in turn give you self worth.
To empower is to the authority and the power to achieve something. Free the Children is empowering people all around the world and give them the resources to create a better life for themselves. It doesn't take much difficultly to empower someone who is so ssuppressed I can empower a whole community by purchasing a 50.00$ goat, which will in turn multiply into a herd providing them with a source of income, food, and milk. I can empower a woman in Africa by buying a rafaki bracelet for 10.00$, half of that money will go to her, and half will go to making her community better which in turn empowers so many more people then just one. This hunger and spirit for empowerment I have garnered from We Day will not be short lived, I plan on continue to carry out this spirit of empowerment in all areas of my life. It will be another dosage of self worth for me.
the sky is not the limit, it is a gateway to infinite possibilities,
Liv Alexa
No comments:
Post a Comment