I am MOM

I am MOM
If I knew then what I know now . . .
"I take a very practical view of raising children. I put a sign in each of their rooms: 'Checkout Time is 18 years.'"
Erma Bombeck

Thursday, October 25, 2012

We Day Alberta - Be the change

I spent my childhood exploring our developing neighbourhood with my siblings and friends. We built tree 'forts' in the forest, we played hide and seek at night, we played street hockey through the long winter, we met at the playground day in and day out, we rode our bikes over home-made jumps, and we counted on our parents for everything.  And for the most part, they came through for us.  We were not aware that a world existed outside of our neighbourhood, outside of our school, beyond the edges of our extended family. We were free to be - children. 

Yesterday, my kids and I spent the day at We Day, Alberta. We Day is an "educational event - a movement of young people leading local and global change.  It's a worldwide movement that proves anyone can change the world - and revolutionizes how we make that change." (we day.com)  It was started five years ago, by "Free the Children" founders, Craig and Mark Kielburger.  

It is difficult to find the right words to convey how it felt to BE there.  The Saddledome was filled with 15,000 children, youth and their supporters (parents, teachers).  The enthusiasm could quite literally be felt rumbling through the floor.  Moreover, the stories that were openly shared on the stage and through video were simultaneously unbelievable and palpably real; they left me feeling openly vulnerable.

You can't buy a ticket to We Day (I know, I tried!) - you have to earn it.  I felt blessed to be there; and at some level I knew that I belonged.  I was humbled and amazed. My kids, who have already seen and experienced the inequity and hardship that exists in the world, have strong desires to do good things for the world. Consequently they felt 'at home' amidst so many philanthropic minds, passionate beginners and gifted artists.  They are not (like) the children who I grew up with; they are free to be children (now), but they are immeasurably more aware of what exists beyond their reach than I was, at their age.

I have my friend, Carolyn to thank for the privilege of being at We Day.  Thank you.  
Carolyn is the Executive Director of The Keg Spirit Foundation. The Foundation, which has only been in existence since 2001 and concentrates on supporting the development of children and youth, has already raised more than $5.5 million for over 300 charities across North America.  The Keg is a friend and supporter of "Free the Children" and a sponsor of We Day, and so Carolyn was able to invite a few special guests.

We Day was filled with passion, energy, emotion and "shameless idealism" (to borrow the words of Craig Kielburger).  To be in the presence of Craig and Mark, two compassionate, inspiring and knowledgeable men, left me awestruck.  Their verve spread through the crowd like a viral contagion, infecting all whose resistance was low.  And indeed, many were infected through the course of the day. But the treatment, it turns out, is to believe in ourselves and commit ourselves to giving and to doing. At the end of the day, despite feeling overwhelmed, I was left with a sense of possibility.  I will ponder what small act I can commit myself (and my family) to; for I can no longer "doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has" (Margaret Mead).  

There were many poignant stories shared yesterday and though I know that I cannot convey the same message and engage with you in the way that these speakers did with me (and thousands of others), I can tell you that they have overcome the kinds of odds that most of us cannot fathom.  It is astonishing. When you have time, check out the stories of Liz Murray, author of Breaking Night: My Journey from Homeless to Harvard and Spencer West, who shared the struggles he overcame after losing his legs at the age of five.  (He recently summited Mt. Kilamanjaro).


Let me leave you with this wonderful quote and straightforward challenge by Mahatma Gandhi:
Be the change that you wish to see in the world.




Tuesday, October 23, 2012

The three P's





One day this summer, as our daughter was changing out of her beach gear, and into her summer clothes, she poked her head out of the door, and rather franticly waved at me to come in.  Then she closed the door.  I finished what I was doing, and silently slipped through the door.  She was huddled in a corner of her bed, looking down, and clearly distressed.

I gently touched her shoulder.  “What’s going on?” I casually asked, although my heart was racing, and my brain was pondering: What now?

“We-ellllllll,” she slowly stammered. . . . “I might be pregnant,” she fearfully squeaked, and covered her face with her hands.

“Oh??” I queried, with a bemused smile. “Really,” I mockingly asked, “how do you think this happened?”

“Well, in grade six, my teacher said that if you missed your period …. maybe one or two times – well - you could be pregnant,” she sputtered.

Now I had to hold back the laughter that was forming, as my naive daughter was clearly distressed.  “Oh, I see,” I said in a matter of fact tone, “do you remember anything else that your teacher might have said?”

“NOOOO!” she wailed, falling backwards onto the bed, clutching her knees to her chest.

“Well, there is one more detail that the teacher would have taught you.” I paused, she glanced up at me, “When did you last have sex?” I asked her.

She sat bolt upright and implored, “MOM!!  SEX!! I didn’t do the sex!”

“Oh, honey, I know that,” I sat on the bed beside her. “You see, the thing is – you can’t get pregnant if you didn’t do the sex” I calmed her.

“Really?” she asked. “Well what about my period?”

“Remember when you are still young, and puberty is just starting in your body, your period doesn’t always happen in a regular pattern?” I explained.

“Oh,….. so I ‘m not pregnant?” she wondered.

“No, you are not pregnant.” I assured her.

“Okay.  Thanks Mom,” She calmly said - and sauntered out of the room.