A Terrible Thing To Waste

Several years ago there was a commercial on TV about going to college. I do not remember all the specifics, but I do remember someone saying, "a mind, a terrible thing to waste." I agree with that statement.

In Honduras, there are thousands of children who never have the opportunity to go to school because of the extreme poverty in which they live. Many, many families do not have the funds to send their children to school. And due to the conditions in which they live, many children are malnourished. If a child does not receive the proper nutrition, especially in the first two years of life, their ability to learn may be stunted forever. Therefore, many children do not have the opportunity or the ability to go to school.

Some of the children at Casa de Esperanza have been so malnourished that their ability to learn is very limited and they will not advance very far. On the other hand, there are some that have been rescued from abject poverty that are pretty sharp.

Ana is brilliant. She will be starting second grade in a couple of weeks. She can read and write and is good at math. She speaks good english. She always wants to learn something new. She made excellent grades in first grade. And little Nohemy that came to Casa de Esperanza in November, came not knowing how to hold a pencil or say her ABC's or count. She is five and will be starting kindergarten and had had no instruction of any kind. She seems to be learning quickly. She is very pleased with herself when she grasps something new. She is also a little untamed and strong-willed. I hope when kindergarten starts, she goes to school and wants to learn because she is certainly capable.

And to think, that if these two had not been rescued from the poverty and uneducated places in which they formerly lived, these two minds would be going to waste. There would be not even a slight chance of a better life.

These are examples of only two sharp minds not going to waste. There are more examples in Casa de Esperanza and, I am sure, every children's home in Honduras has examples, too.

I pray in 2010 that more children are rescued from poverty and given the chance to not let a brilliant mind go to waste.

Terri