What do we do?
Sir Lib made us watch this video documentary called "Buto't Balat," which is about malnutrition here in the country. After seeing a family of ten sharing one cup of coffee for breakfast and a 14-year-old whose weight is of a 2-year-old, the initial feeling is guilt. I felt guilty about how I live my life- the food I eat, the clothes I wear, everything. My mere existence is causing others to suffer (as Levinas puts it)-- that has never been clearer until Buto't Balat.
It was a sin to eat.
Shared this experience with a friend, and I was surprised (in a good and bad way) with what she said: "Kung hindi ka kakain, ano namang magagawa nun? Edi pareho lang kayo nagutom! Lose-lose situation lang yan. Edi kumain ka nalang, may sumaya pa."
Makes a lot of sense. It made me realize that NO, feeling guilty is not enough. Downsizing one's lifestyle doesn't really solve anything (It just saves you from the guilt). You really have to reach out and do something that will directly affect those in need. I sound preachy or whatever but as Sam would say, that's just a statement of fact.
And so my dilemma now is what do we do. We are caught up in our own worlds-- we want to help, yes, but it seems like we can't find the perfect opportunity to do so. It's frustrating, really-- to just sit here and watch the inhumanity happen.
To view an excerpt of the documentary, visit: http://www.gmanews.tv/video/9397/
It was a sin to eat.
Shared this experience with a friend, and I was surprised (in a good and bad way) with what she said: "Kung hindi ka kakain, ano namang magagawa nun? Edi pareho lang kayo nagutom! Lose-lose situation lang yan. Edi kumain ka nalang, may sumaya pa."
Makes a lot of sense. It made me realize that NO, feeling guilty is not enough. Downsizing one's lifestyle doesn't really solve anything (It just saves you from the guilt). You really have to reach out and do something that will directly affect those in need. I sound preachy or whatever but as Sam would say, that's just a statement of fact.
And so my dilemma now is what do we do. We are caught up in our own worlds-- we want to help, yes, but it seems like we can't find the perfect opportunity to do so. It's frustrating, really-- to just sit here and watch the inhumanity happen.
To view an excerpt of the documentary, visit: http://www.gmanews.tv/video/9397/