Passion for Liberty

Been feeling pretty heavy. Sometimes in moments. Sometimes in stretches. I have to take advantage of all the times the weight seems to lift, even a little.

So right now I want to exercise my mother’s right to brag. Charli has developed a passion for helping the people of North Korea. They are people just like us but who happened to have been born into an oppressive situation with, and this is a gross understatement, a scarcity of opportunities. Once when Charli was sharing about this with a peer, the response was, “If it’s so bad, why don’t they just leave?” Wow. That’s a brilliant idea.

Charli’s interest was piqued when she happened to watch a documentary on North Korea. She kept watching more documentaries and then started trying to teach herself the Korean language. In all her research, she came upon Liberty in North Korea (LINK), an organization dedicated to helping North Korean refugees. She contacted them and has been volunteering at their SoCal headquarters in Long Beach. Last week, she was one of the primary planners for an event aimed at raising awareness about the plight of the North Korean people. Two North Korean defectors shared their stories. My daughter came home more passionate about this cause than ever.

When something bigger takes hold of us, we are compelled to make a difference. I am grateful that Charli has found her “something bigger,” and I’m so proud of her for committing herself to it.

On another note, I was so bummed last night to hear that the new lights we put on the bike yesterday weren’t working. Today I had the great revelation that maybe there was an on/off switch that we missed. We stopped by after soccer, and Chip confirmed. Turns out, “on” is the magic ticket.

Woohoo--I just heard from my friend Kelly that the lights on the bike are shining brightly for Chandler tonight!

That makes me happy. A little bit lighter.

Today’s Chandler-ness:
3-31-98 Dad, you have to get me a drink when we get home so I don’t lose my drinking skills.