From working 45-hour weeks this summer, I’ve learned to truly cherish the weekend.
Sometimes, there’s nothing better than a nice, lazy day on the couch with a good book to read.
Or just hanging out and playing board games with friends late into the night.
It really takes out the stress from a packed work week.
“Justice for Oscar Grant!”
That’s what many people shouted in downtown Oakland last night. Protesters wanted to make a statement after the Johannes Mehserle verdict was announced. But the rioting and looting was senseless and served no purpose. Just plain stupid.
Over 80 protesters were arrested.
What did breaking into stores and setting trash cans on fire do for justice? Nothing.
I feel sorry for the damage costs to the city of Oakland and its residents.
Photo by Karl Mondon
Photo by Karl Mondon
A few people did it a more peaceful way though, sitting down in front of the police lines and playing chess for nearly three hours.
Oakland residents Yafeu Tyhimba and Keba Konte set down a chess board in the crosswalk to promote peace. “It’s a thinking man’s game,” Konte said. “And that’s what we need to be doing tonight.”
Photo by Jane Tyska
Violence is not justice.
In the mid-1970s, a Swedish pre-school teacher named Hilde Back decided to sponsor an African student. Despite her modest living, Hilde put a few dollars in an envelope every month and sent it to a Kenyan boy named Chris Mburu.
This money inspired Chris and was enough to support him through primary and secondary school. This help pushed Chris to become a star student, study law at the University of Nairobi, and eventually leave his village to graduate from Harvard Law School, after which he moved on to become a United Nations human rights advocate.
Hilde’s couple of bucks each month changed his life. But of course, the story doesn’t end there.
To honor the benefactor he had never met, Chris established the Hilde Back Education Fund in 2001 to support more Kenyan students and improve young lives. The charitable community-based organization seeks to provide education scholarship and other academic opportunities to bright children and from poor families and disadvantaged communities
After a while, Chris was finally able to track down the 80-year-old Back and bring her to Africa to see the widespread results of her thoughtful generosity.
Photo by Harvard Law School
I think sometimes, in the chaos of daily life, we forget the little things in life. The little things that make life enjoyable, make others smile, and make us feel good inside.
A couple of weekends ago, I spent my Saturday at a Do Something Boot Camp, and met an awesome young fellow named Jimmy Daggett. He started a non-profit organization called Random Acts of Kindness in December 2009. Check it out!
Based out of Redwood City, it has grown to over 1,800 members both online and offline. It all started with Jimmy and a friend making a film about handing origami cranes out to whoever they met on the streets of Redwood City.
The group’s mission is to spread random kindness, creativity, and care to as many people in the world, no matter who or where they may be. What a beautiful concept :)
Little things, like random acts of kindness, are what we need more of in this world.
“Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.”
– Leo F. Buscaglia