Summer Camp Series: Cultural Encounters
Understanding a culture different from your own is an almost inhuman task, requiring a complete alienation from the attitudes, motivations, ideas, and ways of life which since birth your own culture has ingrained into your very soul. This week I have been shocked and amazed time and time again, having met more people from foreign […]
Swinging on the swing set, very coolly, I asked my friend what she knew about sex; asthird graders, and basically grown ups, it was only natural that we should address the matter. The word had been dropped here and there on the playground and in class; Dayton’s older brother had watched the episode of Seinfeld where […]
Summer Camp Series: A Voice from Mexico
The WYA camp is not only camping by itself, and is not only studying by itself. You don’t feel like you’re in school or as if you’re in a forest-type camp. It feels like being in your second home, where you learn and grow. At the WYA camp, the campers became my brothers and sisters […]
Celebrating Life at World Youth Day
Last Monday, July 22nd, Rio de Janeiro’s most symbolic figure, the Christ Redeemer, welcomed with open arms thousands of young people that reunited in this city for a very special celebration, World Youth Day 2013. Approximately 3 million people from around the world gathered to participate in this great event in an environment of solidarity […]
Summer Camp Series: HIV/AIDS and a Person Centered Approach
33.3 million people in the world live with HIV every day. The incurable disease occurs in every part of the world – also in the first world. Yet being HIV-infected is still a taboo that most people are ashamed to talk about. Being a HIV-patient is associated with being an irresponsible person who has caused the disease himself. He […]
Summer Camp Series: Ahmed Elian
I can certainly say with no hesitation that camp has changed me, for the better obviously. As a kid, I always thought that having a solid, non-changing personality is best. But lately, I’ve been thinking of myself as a blob of clay that still needs to be shaped. I try to embrace change as long […]
World Youth Alliance at World Youth Day, Brazil
It’s funny how most of the coolest experiences of my life had happened since I joined WYA. I’m about to tell you one of the most incredible adventures I have had so far. I will briefly tell you about the trip I just made to Rio de Janeiro. You may wonder what I’m doing here […]
Solidarity: The Balanced Approach To Society
The west is again becoming aware of the fact that all members of the human family need and depend on each other. In my opinion, solidarity entails finding the right balance between oneself and one’s social environment. Individualist behavior is triggered by a false sense of security that results in a lack of self-respect. A person is […]
Educating the Human Person
When I was small my parents always claimed that I was the luckiest kid in town because I was given everything that the other kids had. At that point in time, learning English was in fashion and I even had a private tutor in English. Obviously, it was a luxury and my parents were so […]
Consider the Common Good
The past few days have been quite hectic politically. And all hasn’t gone well with Egypt’s Mohammed Morsi who was ousted by that country’s military on July 3. Millions of Egyptians protested prior to his ouster and they expected nothing but his removal. Morsi’s toppling by the army has sent frissons to Zimbabweans whose government […]