I was reading an article in Time yesterday about the Live-8 concert and the upcoming G-8 summit. The guys being interviewed (Bono & friends) talked about how the one critical missing link in their mission is the U.S. America, through Bush, has given more to African nations than any other time in our history. Yet, they emphasized, the U.S. was starting from such a low bar that we only had one way to go.
Something they said stood out to me more than anything else: America doesn't have a lack of empathy; they just don't know the issues as well. I wonder if that is true?
I often am frustrated with the media for being so entranced by gossip news or only talking about what is happening here at home. I have often said aloud, I wonder what was happening in the world today, while all we have been hearing about is _____ (fill in the blank with Michael Jackson, school board issues, NBA draft). I want to know about those experiences; I want to also know what people are experiencing elsewhere. I think traveling the world has helped open my consiousness to the the pain, the joys and the beauty around the world.
So, today, while I am putting together pasta salad and jello, while we walk through the Wisteria Lane neighborhood where my brother lives in order to end up at a community park gathering, while I hide with my son from the loud bangs and bright colors in the sky, I think of the world. I am so grateful to be an American. I love my country so very much. But it's not just about us! There is so much more to this amazing, diverse and wonderful world.
God Bless America...and the rest of the world, too, please.
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