PASS THE TORCH (old site -- visit new site at 2passthetorch.com)

Thursday, August 10, 2006

Making the World A Better Place

The AW Chain is in it's fourth round now and Laurie at Peregrinas , who always has excellent, informative posts, has tagged me with an outstanding topic:

"What do you do to make the world a better place?"

If you've ever read my blog, surely you know my answer: I raise my kids the best way I can.

I figure my imprint on them is the most significant, ongoing impact I can make in the world, and I hope, with all my parenting imperfections, that the good outweighs the bad once the tallies are made.

In a broader sense, of course, I hope that my focus on youth empowerment and Developmental Assets makes a difference as well. Seeing young people as contributing members of society isn't necessarily a mainstream way of thinking. My hope is that by describing empowered, responsible kids, I will help others to recognize and celebrate those qualities in other youth.

For instance, Australian writer (and AW colleague), Gillian Pollack told me about an outstanding example of youth empowerment she's witnessed. Teams of youth in Louisiana have helped to improve literacy in their communities. It's a powerful example of what young people can accomplish when they're recognized as useful. I'm hoping that Pass the Torch Tuesday will continue to generate stories like this one, as well as those about parents witnessing great things in their children.

Peggy at The Road Less Traveled is next in the chain. Please visit her, and all the AW Chain participants. We'd all love to read your comments on this series of posts. CLICK HERE for the complete list of participants. I'll update it with permalinks once the chain is completed.

(SCROLL DOWN FOR THURSDAY THIRTEEN)

16 Comments:

  • Ahh Torch, you stole what I was gonna use! LOL. I think as "moms" we have the hardest job and the most rewarding. In the long run the way we raise our children has the potential to effect generations of people, not just our neck of the woods.

    By Anonymous Anonymous, At 12:46 PM  

  • Parenting might be the toughest of jobs out there since there is no way to avoid the emotional connections that come along with it. But of course, the higher the risk, the higher the rewards.

    Nice post.

    By Blogger Brian, At 12:54 PM  

  • Thanks for commenting BK and brian!

    Oh and BK - please don't be afraid to repeat the theme! I think the more that message is read, the better!

    By Blogger Kelly Curtis, At 2:22 PM  

  • Nice post, Torch. I wish more parents viewed their children the way you do.

    By Blogger Cath Smith, At 3:47 PM  

  • Nice post Kelly.

    I second all the comments that have been made thus far. As parents, we really need to make the effort to spend as much quality time as we can in raisng our kids. It's a scary world out there but we can prepare them for it and help them to rise above it.

    By Blogger Unknown, At 9:26 PM  

  • I completely agree about raising your kids being the most important thing you can do to better the world. I think a great deal of our socital issues today come from loosing sight of that all important job. I put raising my family first, and look what AW forums got...Blue Texas!

    Keep looking to the future.

    By Blogger Wendy Gunderson, At 11:21 PM  

  • Good point about the kids. So many people seem to treat them as fashion accessories or pets.
    We have two daughters who get along really well with each other despite a three year age gap. I know they'd love to go bike riding or hit the local park more often with me, which is one area I do let them down a bit. They do spend a lot of time outside playing together though, so it's not like they're cooped up in front of a screen all day long.

    By Blogger Simon Haynes, At 11:48 PM  

  • You are an inspiration, Kelly. As a parent and as a person. Lovely post :)

    By Blogger Bhaswati, At 1:32 AM  

  • Thank you all for commenting on this subject that's so near and dear to me.

    Bhaswati - you made my day!

    By Blogger Kelly Curtis, At 9:53 AM  

  • I love reading so much that I sometimes forget that just getting through a book can be a struggle for some people. Thanks for linking to the literacy project - a very worthy cause.

    By Blogger Peggy K, At 3:55 PM  

  • Thanks for posting this, Kelly. You are definitely a parental inspiration.

    By Blogger Matt, At 3:15 AM  

  • Can I say again how very much I admire those Dutchtown kids?

    Their teachers just won an award - it was very much deserved and I was very happy to hear about it: http://www.tricomassociates.com/disney/2006%20Press%20Releases/page13/page13.html

    By Anonymous Anonymous, At 8:43 PM  

  • This is an excellent post and an excellent blog. You truly are an inspiration, and I wish there were more parents like you-- the world would be a much better place.

    By Anonymous Anonymous, At 11:40 PM  

  • Wkow! I'm lovin' the warm fuzzies, folks! Laurie just introduced an excellent topic for me, so I've her to thank;)

    By Blogger Kelly Curtis, At 12:21 PM  

  • *blushes* Aw, Kelly, the inspiration for my post came from your blog to start with, so it's still your fault. :)

    I completely agree with you - raising children well is, in my opinion, the single most important thing you can do in this life. I applaud you for being so proactive about it.

    By Anonymous Anonymous, At 9:13 AM  

  • You're kids are lucky to have such a dedicated, responsible mother.

    Great post.

    By Blogger cesarcarlos, At 12:33 PM  

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