getstumped

There was an article in the web about a 6th grade school girl organizing small games in her group, collecting money for the event and at end of the day, she gave the proceedings (around 800 dollars) for the improvement of children’s lives in poor countries.

Another girl had her own series of greeting cards, sold them and donated the proceedings for a similar cause.

When do you think we should start spending time not for ourself, but for others too. Most of our lives goes like this.. we grow up, get a decent education, get a decent job, marry someone, populate the universe, try harder and harder to fill the niche gaps in our life and then one day you will see angels flying pass by (..assuming there is one). Is this is what we can do most with our lives? Certainly not. There is more and there should be more.

John wood resigned his high profile job in Microsoft to educate childrens in Nepal and Cambodia. Jacqueline Novogratz left her job in Wall street and started helping women in Rwanda, Kenya and in other developing countries. A recent Business week article said that IIM (Indian Institute of Management) graduates are more becoming social entrepreneurs in India or joining not-for-profit organizations with 30% or less of a salary that their fellow peers are offered.

There are about 4 billion people in the world under poverty. There are some 1 billion people who are illiterate. Individuals like above can change a community or communities around. If we are to change the world, it has to be a movement. It has to be something like what Buddha did to mankind with his Enlightment. It has to be something like what Gandhi did to India with his non-violence. It has to be a movement that you and I and everyone should be part of.

Isn’t “now” a good time to start?