Perdido

I am reading a book for one of my classes today, and I came across this in the book. I thought it very interesting. The book deals with the poverty levels in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Specifically those that live in the Favelas in the outskirts of Rio. It has a lot of different aspects to the book, some great, some not so great. But this specific story I thought necessary to share, and especially since I haven't written on here lately.

Three people traveling together came to a river and asked the boatman to take them across. He readily agreed, and when they were on their way the first passenger, a lawyer, asked him if he was familiar with Brazillian law. When the boatman humbly admitted that he was not, the lawyer replied, "then you are perdido (doomed, lost)- without that knowledge, you can be nothing." The second asked the same about mathematics, and on hearing the boatman knew nothing of this, repeated, "then you are perdido- without the knowledge of math, you are nothing." The third, a school teacher, said, "Surely you know how to read and write." "No," said the boatman. The schoolteacher replied, "Then you are perdido."

Suddenly a huge tidal wave came up the river and tipped over the canoe. The boatman turned to his passengers in concern" and seeing them being swept along downstream yelled out, "Do you know how to swim?" "No," they said; "We never learned." "Then you are perdido," he replied.

The thought behind this story is that so many people, especially children living in poverty do not believe that they can bring anything to the table in this life. They see what conditions they live in, and they also see what conditions those in drug gangs are living in, as well as the American standards on television and on the internet. This story though clearly illustrates that one can be something. All the children need is to believe in themselves, which is very difficult to do when your family lives on less than $2 a day and both your parents are unemployed. (If they're still alive).

I guess I write this to keep all of my readers aware that there is a world outside of our bubbles in the United States. Children and people are all over this world suffering to make ends meet, or find their next meal. So many kids have no self confidence, and no drive to make a better life for themselves. I encourage you all to pray for this world. That someone, somewhere would begin to help in anyway possible. And for those that are currently out there on the front lines doing whatever it is that they can do. Pray that they have strength and endurance to continue to do what it is they're doing.