Raising Awareness

 On April 10th we were in San Diego for spring break. We decided to join the effort in raising awareness of the company TOM'S and what they are all about. TOM'S is a shoe company and every time you purchase a pair of TOM'S, they send a pair of shoes to children in the world who need shoes. I love this company and what they stand for. They also give sight to someone in need when you buy a pair of their sunglasses. The shoes are also very comfortable and my kids and I love them.

 We were fortunate to have it easy that day. We spent most of our day at the beach and pool. We did go to a restaurant and Target. There were times we all stepped on rocks and felt just the tiniest pain. It gave us all a greater appreciation of how hard it must be to not have shoes. My sister didn't let her boys do it the whole time because she didn't want their feet to get hurt or dirty.   There are children all over the world who get diseases that are from the soil and absorb through their bare feet. My kids appreciate their shoes a little more.

 If you have never heard of this company or haven't seen their video on their website, I urge you to do so. Small choices make big differences.

 Last night was "Cover the Night". It was an awareness campaign to help the world become educated on who Joseph Kony is and what terror he causes and has been doing so for 26 years. The campaign called for covering the city with flyers and posters with Kony's name so anyone who doesn't know who he is will find out. My kids and some of their friends helped me put up several posters around town. The kids have seen the "KONY 2012" video and wanted to help.

 This is Joseph Kony. He is the worst of the worst. He is a war lord who abducts children from their homes and turns them into sex slaves and arms them with guns and makes them kill. He makes these little children mutilate peoples faces and kill their own parents. If you haven't done so, please go to the "Invisible Children" website and watch the movie. 

 I know it is hard to think that our small acts of awareness matter, but they do. If my efforts do nothing more than raise awareness to my children that the world is so much bigger than theirs and that others suffer, I have made a difference. My children want to make a difference. They feel the same passion as I do as we do our small part to raise awareness and do something, albeit small, to change our world. I hope to keep my children and self informed of the world around us and not be blinded by the luxuries we enjoy as citizens of the great country we live. We not just United States Citizens, we are world citizens, human citizens and brothers and sisters in Zion. Find a cause, any cause you feel strongly about and act. We can all make a difference.