This year I got to move to New York. It has been my dream since I was a little girl and to be able fulfill it has been the biggest adventure of many experiences. I realized soon after settling in The Big Apple that I wasn’t only here by determination but by the resources I was able to use, foremost, my education. Education is something that our generation often takes for granted.
At home and abroad, there are many who don’t have the opportunity to be educated in a progressive environment. To be a part of AFR Clothing has been extremely eye opening for this particular reason. One shirt gives one child a proper education, allowing them to do what I’ve been blessed, reach for a dream.
The Streets of New York
If you’ve ever walked the streets of New York, you find that it is a city with constant inspiration and beauty but can also be dark, and twisted. This city is two halves of a world- the better off and the better left off. When I look around the city I see glamorous people with high class clothing gliding to and from atmospheric structures. But then you look down and hunched on the ground are homeless people, unclean and visibly aged. It’s a hard thing to have to look at it, and even harder to sometimes ignore.
Look For The Good In People
But anyone who knows me will say I like to see the good in all things. My favorite part of being on the trains is the lively performances- the subway is actually a stage in this city. Each day, as another homeless person comes in, sings a song, and asks for money, I look around to see who will be the generous individual to reach in their wallet and bring out a dollar. It’s customary for everyone on the train to look a little distant. You don’t want to gather attention and you certainly aren’t there to entertain the destitute. After all, everyone is struggling and you can’t pass money to every homeless person you see, right? But each day, on that train, I am always amazed by that one person who actually gives the dollar with a smile or a wink- a form of encouragement, a pat a back, a way of saying “Hey. I got you.” It’s not out of pity. It’s out respect for that person.
Imagine a More Giving World
And that person who gives the donation and the person, who sings to not live, but survive, remind me of how small we are in the scale of life. Just imagine- what if everyone cared for another homeless or less fortunate person? What if we all gave fifty cents in their guitar case instead of a meaningless pitiful glance? What if we cared more about their struggle than are own? Would anyone in New York be homeless? Would anyone in the world be homeless? It’s a hard thing to think through, and an even better thing to educate others about.
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